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The United States consumes 390 million gallons of gasoline a day. Even if you believe climate change is the greatest hoax since Orson Wells convinced the country it was under Martian attack, we can't sustain that kind of consumption because the supply of oil is dwindling and what remains can't be pumped much faster.
By embracing small, lightweight cars with hyper-efficient engines, alternative fuels and hybrids we can cut our fuel consumption 30 to 50 percent by 2035, say researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Improvements in vehicle design and engine efficiency, hybrid technology and the inevitable electrification of automobiles will go a long way toward slaking our thirst for gas, they say, but the biggest benefit will come when people realize they don't need the fastest car or biggest truck on the block to slog through our daily commutes or run to the store for a quart of milk.

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