Mass Transit Boom

Billitteri, Thomas J. "Mass Transit Boom." CQ Researcher 18.3 (2008): 49-72.

Do new systems boost ridership, relieve congestion?Pressed by rising gas prices, highway gridlock and global-warming concerns, cities are spending unprecedented amounts on public transit systems — from streetcars and other "light-rail" lines to commuter trains and rapid-transit buses. They also are experimenting with "congestion-pricing" plans that impose tolls on motorists to induce them to use transit or alter driving habits. While traffic congestion is partly behind the transit boom, it is not the only force driving it. Some light-rail projects are built hand-in-hand with "transit-oriented developments" — walkable, mixed-use projects designed to attract residents, shoppers and office workers to urban neighborhoods. Cities from Portland, Ore., to Charlotte, N.C., have embraced rail projects, but critics argue that such ventures aren't boosting ridership or reducing traffic. Some worry, too, that they benefit the wealthy at the expense of low-income residents whose needs may not be well-served by new rail lines.

From the CQ Researcher. Reprinted with permission from CQ Press.

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Science in America

Price, Tom. "Science in America." CQ Researcher 18.2 (2008): 25-48.
Many leaders in business, government and education warn that a shortage of scientists is jeopardizing the nation's world leadership in science and technology, along with its military supremacy and high standard of living. For a short-term fix, they propose loosening immigration restrictions to allow more high-skilled workers from overseas. Long term, they say the United States must greatly improve pre-college education, produce more college graduates with mathematics and science degrees and increase investment in research and development. Others argue the alarm is just a scare tactic by employers who want to import more high-tech workers and pay them low wages. Across the country, meanwhile, businesses are joining thousands of schools in innovative efforts to convince more children to study science and to teach them more effectively.
From the CQ Researcher. Reprinted with permission from CQ Press.

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Oil

Katel, Peter. "Oil Jitters." CQ Researcher 18.1 (2008): 1-24.

Vastly increased demand for oil in rapidly modernizing China and India, warfare and instability in the Middle East and the weakening U.S. dollar have revived fears of a new energy crisis. Gasoline shortages — and the accompanying lines at gas stations — were thought to have ended with the Jimmy Carter administration. But as 2008 began, American drivers were paying more than $3 a gallon, and crude oil hit a milestone — $100 a barrel. Some oil experts warn of even bigger price shocks to come as oil-producing nations use more and more of their own oil, and energy demand jumps 50 percent by 2030. Some experts predict an oil "production crunch" within four to five years that will have severe geopolitical and economic impacts, and one expert says the energy supply-demand gap could create "social chaos and war" by 2020. In any event, the days of cheap, plentiful oil appear to be over, and motorists may have to learn how to conserve energy.
From the CQ Researcher. Reprinted with permission from CQ Press.

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Margonelli, Lisa. Oil on the brain : adventures from the pump to the pipeline. New York: Doubleday, 2007. HD9560.5 .M3185 2007

Tertzakian, Peter. A thousand barrels a second : the coming oil break point and the challenges facing an energy dependent world. New York : McGraw-Hill, 2006. HD9502 .A2T473 2006