commitment of capital, material and technological resources on the scale demanded by the SPS system The outlook for the rest of this decade is for continued and probably insurmountable opposition to any major R&D investment in satellite power systems. The energy prospects and the potential viability of space solar power may be perceived quite differently, however, as the final decade of the century gets underway. The near-term energy problems in Europe and Japan are already far more intractable than those the U.S. confronts, and the challenges facing the oil-poor developing nations are of truly prodigious proponions (80). An internationalization of the SPS effort is probably indispensable to its support, but it will take at least another decade to establish the requisite degree of trust and cooperation in the international arena. By then, the technology of photovoltaics and microwaves, of space transportation and large-scale construction, may have advanced sufficiently to remove much of the “science-fiction” quality with which the concept of space solar power is still embued. We have seen that the compatibility between societal trends and technological options is an essential condition for the development of any highly complex and expensive technology. It is also clear that the parameters that underlie that compatibility are notoriously changeable in the flux of the modern world. The prospects for space solar power may be dim in this decade. In the longer run, however, as societal patterns continue to evolve and as “humanity's impending breakout into space” (81) unfolds, the SPS concept is likely to be given more serious consideration. Acknowledgement The editor wishes to thank Dr. T. Stephen Cheston for reviewing this paper. REFERENCES I P.E. Glaser, 1 he Earth Benefits of Solar Power Satellites, Space Solar Power Review 1, 9-38, 1980. 2. P.E. Glaser, Interview, Omni Magazine, pp 67-69, 114-116, May, 1981. 3. L.J. Carter, House Gives a Nod to Solar Power Satellite, Science 206, 1052-1054, 1979. 4. Office of Technology Assessment, Solar Power Satellites. OTA-E-144, 1981. 5. National Research Council, Electrii Power from Orbit: A Critique of a Satellite Power System, National Academy Press. Washington, DC, 1981. 6. O.D. Duncan. Sociologists Should Reconsider Nuclear Energy. Social Forces 57, 1-22, 1978. 7. R.U. Ayres, Uncertain Futures: Challenges for Decision-Makers, Wiley, New York, 1979. 8. D.L. Sills, Energy and Society, in .1. Kameron, ed . 1 he Social Dimensions of Energy Options: Conference Proceedings, pp. 18-24, Ramapo, Ramapo Center for Future Studies, NJ, 1979. 9. L.P. Gerlach, Energy Wars and Social Change, in S Abbott and J. van Willigen, eds.. Predicting Sociocultural Change, pp. 76-94, The University of Georgia Press, Athens, 1980. 10. S.Z. Klausner, The Energy Social System, The Annals AAPSS 444, 1-22, 1979. 1 I. L.C. Thurow, The Zero-Sum Society, Basic Books, New York, 1980. 12. W.W. Harman and R. Carlson. Society, the Economy, and Energy, in K.D. Wilson, ed., Prospects for Growth, pp. 92-113, Praeger, New York, 1977. 13. D. Yankelovich and B. Lefkowitz. The Public Debate on Growth: Preparing for Resolution, Unpublished Mitchell Prize Award Paper, 1979. 14. Cambridge Reports, Future of Country Looks Dim, in Opinion Roundup. Public Opinion, October/ November, 1979. p. 33. 15. J Magney, Mountains, Molehills, and Media Hypes: The Curious Case of the New Conservatism. Working Papers, May/June, 1979, pp. 28-34. 16. A. Clymer, Poll Indicates Turn Toward Optimism on Nation's Future, Ilie New York Times, 11 July 1981. 17. E. Rosa, The Public and the Energy Problem. Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, April 1978, pp. 5-7. 18. B.C. Farhar, P. Weis, C. T. Unseld. and B. A. Burns, Public Opinion About Energy: A Literature Review. SER1/TR-53-155, 1979. 19. W. Schneider, Why Most Americans Say the Energy Crisis Is Not Real, Politics Today, October 1979, pp. 12-14. 20. R. Stobaugh and D. Yergin, Energy: An Emergency Telescoped, Foreign Affairs 58, 563-595, 1980. 21. Harris Survey, 73 Percent of Americans Feel Energy Crisis Presents "Clear and Present Danger” to U.S., Ihe Houston Post, 17 August 1979.
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