I am not arguing for "let's go pedal to the metal and fuck the consequences" model here, but...
I no longer have the reference, but there was an article in the late 19th century in Scientific American magazine, that was looking at the maximum population of New York city. The answer was 1 million people. The answer correct, given the state of technology at the time, but 100% wrong.
It started out by looking at the geography, maximum number of horses and carriages the city can accommodate, the number of stables needed, how much horse manure can be disposed of at the time, came up with a number and then came up with the number of people the horse-based "transportation" infrastructure, and that was 1 million.
March 2, 1901 - The Vertical Growth of New York City was another article in Scientific American.
They did not what they did not know: cars.
Having said that, the Department of Energy just removed form its vocabulary, and programs, anything having to do with renewable energy and climate change.
