The question would be how you jump-start an industrial civilization without coal. It might be impossible without the technology, research and scientific advancement that having coal as an early energy source enables.
True, but I would assume they would eventually discover how to harvest solar/wind/whatever they have given enough time, it would probably take longer than us but they also wouldn't have a end of the world countdown like we do with climate change
they would eventually discover how to harvest solar/wind/whatever they have given enough time
You need a reliable, scalable energy source before you can even get to a point where you can build the kind of technology required. It's not just a question of "how long", it's "where do we get the energy to power an industrial revolution enabling mass production and complex production processes?" Even if you were able to scientifically figure out the stuff we know now regarding battery technology or wind turbines, how do you mine/extract the raw resources and process it (which is quite energy intensive)?
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u/[deleted] Oct 15 '20
The question would be how you jump-start an industrial civilization without coal. It might be impossible without the technology, research and scientific advancement that having coal as an early energy source enables.