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Technology isimplicated in global climate change in variousways-asa source of the problem, a possible solution, and an instrument of measurement and analysis. Coal-fired power plants and gasoline-fueled automobiles produce carbon dioxide emissions, the most important greenhouse-related gas. These emissions may be reduced, for example, by more energy-efficient combustion technologies, storing carbon dioxide emissions in empty gasfields, devising tools and methods to fertilize and irrigate crops more efficiently, or developing technologies that do not produce greenhouse gas emissions such as wind tur-bines and nuclear power. Technologies such as air conditioning and improved building design may enable people to adapt to climate changes. This chapter focuses on the nature and the dynamics of technical change; how technology is shaped by social, economic, and political forces alike; and how, in …