In the early days of the automobile industry there was an ongoing contest to see whether steamers, electric cars or gasoline-powered vehicles would prevail. Steamers ran on water that you could get anywhere, but they were cantankerous, complicated and inconvenient. Electric cars were fast, smooth, comfortable and quiet, but they didn't go very far on one battery charge. Gas powered cars seemed to be the best compromise - at least in the early 1900s.

Now that the world is truly running out of oil,it seems that the gas-powered horseless carriage may not be a winner in the long run. If the gas buggy turns into a permanent loser, does anyone want to guess on the next winner?