You have to admire the confidence of the authors behind the latest study on biofuels and their environmental impact. Most scientists are wary of forecasting even a few years into the future – but these researchers boldly tell us what our world will look like in the year 2100. Unlike mere mortals, they are apparently able to foresee all future innovations in biofuels for the next 90 years, not to mention changes in geopolitics, global population, methods of food production and land use and whether we all finally get jetpacks. With soothsaying ability like that, they must make a killing betting sports in Las Vegas.

Biofuels such as ethanol are low-carbon alternatives to fossil fuels today, and their production grows more efficient with each passing year. Second-generation biofuels – made not from corn but from grass and other organic material – will create even fewer greenhouse gas emissions, helping in the fight against climate change. That may not be as flashy as claiming to know the future, but it’s a lot more useful.