Energy and Environment Undergraduate Course Emphasizing Comparative Metrics

Abstract

This paper presents the pedagogical development of an undergraduate course in energy and the environment at Rice University and the crucial role of comparative metrics in its curriculum. The course, aimed at undergraduate engineering and science majors, overviews the physical principles that constrain energy use and explores how various sectors and fuels affect Earth’s environment and climate. The curriculum emphasizes the application of objective metrics for comparing the cost, energy intensity, and environmental impacts of various energy sources. Such metrics provide alternate approaches for assessing the relative merits of energy options but are neglected in most undergraduate textbooks. Thus, the course relies on assignments derived from supplemental readings to prompt students to compute comparative metrics and critically assess the approaches taken by energy researchers. A term project engages student teams in designing and evaluating original proposals for improving the use of an energy source from the perspective of a scientist, businessperson, or policymaker.