Fill 'er Up

These days, ethanol is praised as the whiz-bang cure-all for our energy ills. And maybe all the sweet talk will cause this "new" fuel to forget that America dumped her for oil in the early 20th century. Oil's just so ... ew all of a sudden. We may finally be ready to return to our first love, an energy source that's been by our side in some form or another since Neolithic times. Oil was too high-maintenance and demanding, anyway.

And ethanol's a much better match ... right? Or maybe biodiesel is the one? Or vegetable oil? Hemp? Turkey guts?

For all the hype, most people barely know enough about biofuels to drop a line or two at a cocktail party. What is ethanol, and how's it different from biodiesel, and where does fry grease come in? Are there cars that can run on this stuff, and who's making them, and where can they fuel up? Who sells it, who makes money off it, and why's it such a political darling? Does "cellulosic" ethanol actually exist in the wild? What's the big deal with Brazil? And does Willie Nelson really run his bong on biodiesel?

We're here to help. Biofuels -- derived from recently living organisms or their metabolic byproducts, aka plants, animals, and poop -- are back, big time. Here's your two-week crash course.

Biofuels series index:
Explainers
Issues and implications
Profiles of proponents
Helpful resources


Uh, bio-what? Explainers

• How the world got addicted to oil, and where biofuels will take us.
• The numbers behind ethanol, cellulosic ethanol, and biodiesel in the U.S.
• How experts measure the energy balance of alternative fuels.
• Cellulosic ethanol may be coming sooner than you think.

Not so fast: Issues and implications

• A look at the impacts of biofuels production, in the U.S. and the world.
• How cash and corporate pressure pushed ethanol to the fore.
• It's time for a real "food vs. fuel" debate.
• What Brazil can teach the U.S. about energy and ethanol.
• As its neighbors back biofuels, Central America gears up for business.
• Three perspectives on the biofuels debate.
• To fulfill its environmental promises, biofuel policy needs a kick in the pants.
• Toward a community-owned, decentralized biofuel future.
• An interview with biofuels naysayer David Pimentel.
• An environmental-justice advocate responds to the biofuels boom.
• What we've learned from the biofuels series.

Count me in: Profiles of proponents

• Using grease and other goodies, small producers are making a big difference.
• Grassroots biodiesel operations contend with industrial sand-kickers.
• How a grassroots biodiesel group can show the way for others.
• An interview with Seattle biodiesel distributor Dan Freeman.
• An interview with Greasecar founder Justin Carven.
• Richard Branson chats about embracing ethanol and slashing airplane emissions.
• Silicon Valley investor Vinod Khosla chats about the promise of ethanol.
• Biofuel pioneer Lee Lynd points the way toward a "carbohydrate economy."
• An interview with Missouri farmer and ethanol co-op member Brian Miles.
• A biodiesel entrepreneur in Argentina spreads seeds of wisdom.
• Grains become fuel at the world's first cellulosic ethanol demo plant.
• An interview with Mary Beth Stanek, General Motors energy director.

Helpful resources

• Find out which cars can run on ethanol and biodiesel.
• All the resources you need to hop on the biofuels bandwagon.
• A handy biofuels glossary, and videos to boot.
• The what, where, and why of E85 ethanol.
• A lighthearted look at biofuels through time.
• The strangest biofuel sources you've never heard of.
• The top 10 reasons to give a hoot about biofuels.
• Check out the latest entries in the celeb-biofuels biz.

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