“Shifting Power”;Since the beginning of industry, humans have been searching for fuel to power machines and generate energy. Fossil fuels, such as crude oil and coal, discovered beneath the earth's surface, have been found to be an excellent source of fuel. These fossil fuels are burned to generate the energy needed to complete various tasks. However, we are now realizing the problems created by using fossil fuels to generate energy. These problems are so great that they will force humans to find an alternative source of energy to avoid the inevitable disasters that await us. Every day, millions of people drive their cars to work and spend the day in a well-lit workspace. However, they never think about the source of the energy on which their daily life depends. Over eighty-five percent of the energy that powers the planet comes from the combustion of fossil fuels (Information 16). Fossil fuels contain impurities and these “impurities such as sulfur burn and produce potentially dangerous oxides”; which are released into the air (Burning www 1). The release of these oxides into the air has many consequences including smog, which is the most obvious problem. The hazy smog that hangs over us in summer is actually ground-level ozone; the most harmful pollutant in our air (Information 59). The pollutants in the air we breathe are very dangerous and cause many problems, especially for people with respiratory disorders. For example, the EPA estimates that emissions of toxic materials such as these "oxides"; they cause approximately 2000 cancer deaths per year (Information 61). Rainwater falling through polluted air also poses a serious risk. Industrial plants and automobiles emit chemicals that mix with moisture in the atmosphere and form acids that eventually fall to Earth (Information 89). The same sulfur and nitrogen oxides that cause smog at ground level form nitric and sulfuric acid in the atmosphere (Burning www 1). Upon arrival on Earth this acid rain damages everything it falls on. Evidence of acid rain is highly visible in damaged forests, polluted soil, and contaminated plants and animals scattered around the world. This acid rain is so harmful that it is even blamed for destroying ancient Greek structures that had previously remained intact (Burning www 2). Adding to the list of health and environmental problems associated with burning fossil fuels, global warming is also a major threat.