Too Cheap to Meter

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Too Cheap to Meter
An Economic and Philosophical Analysis of the Nuclear Dream

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Steven Mark Cohn - Author

SUNY series in Radical Social and Political Theory

Price: $95.00
Hardcover - 467 pages

Release Date: October 1997

ISBN10: 0-7914-3389-7
ISBN13: 978-0-7914-3389-8

Price: $34.95
Paperback - 467 pages

Release Date: October 1997

ISBN10: 0-7914-3390-0
ISBN13: 978-0-7914-3390-4

Available as a Google eBook for other eReaders and tablet devices. Click icon below...

Summary

Uses concepts from social theory to explore the history and future of nuclear power in the U.S. and to explore the nature of technological change in the U.S. economy.

"This is an important history which should capture the interests of those concerned with what energy sources will be used in the next generation. Cohn achieves two goal s, the history of the rise and fall of nuclear power as a dominant paradigm and also how such paradigms are socially constructed. He successfully brings together social science theory and engineering."-- David W. Noble, University of Minnesota

This book weaves together nuclear power and social theory to explain the history and predict the future of nuclear power in the United States and to explore the determinants of technological change in the U.S. economy. The first half of the book looks at who promoted nuclear power, and how they did it, and why nuclear costs and hazards were systematically underestimated. The second half looks at current debates about the technology's future through the lens of its history. Among the topics addressed are debates over the safety and economics of future reactors, the merits of new kinds of nuclear power reactors, the economics of non-nuclear energy options, and the implications of potential greenhouse constraints on fossil fuel use for nuclear power.

The author's work has been praised by both proponents and critics of nuclear power:

"Cohn has a deep insight into the logic of the nuclear power debate. He understands why nuclear enthusiasts believe that solutions exist to current problems and why nuclear critics disagree." --Larry Lidsky, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

"This book is the most profound and rigorous work on the political economy of nuclear power to date. It is destined to become the definitive chronicle of the rise and fall of nuclear power." --Charles Komanoff, Komanoff Energy Associates

"Cohn's book is a great resource for citizens, with many useful perspectives on the past and future of nuclear power." -- Ted Tourlentes, Co-founder, Prairie Alliance

"This is an important, interesting, and powerful book. The author turns a simple and, to some extent, well-known story about nuclear power into an important lesson about technological developments in general. He clearly demonstrates the power and value of his extension of Kuhnian epistemology to the economic history of nuclear power." --Blair Sandler, St. Mary's College

"An impressive piece of work, important on its own and also an outstanding case study in technological hubris and failure." -- Harvey Wasserman, Greenpeace

"Professor Cohn's work on the economics of nuclear power is the best overall economic evaluation I know of. I rely on it, and you should too."-- Arjun Makhijani, President, Institute for Energy and Environmental Research

Steven Mark Cohn is Associate Professor of Economics at Knox College.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures

Acknowledgments

Abbreviations

1. Introduction

Part I: History

2. The Nuclear Planning Context

3. Government Regulation of Nuclear Power

4. The Creation of Promotional Realms of Discourse: A Sociology of Nuclear Knowledge

5. Nuclear Power's OT Differential

6. The Diseastablishment of Nuclear Power as an Official Technology

Part II: The Future of Nuclear Power: Nuclear Sector Issues

7. Nuclear Power Cost Forecasts

8. Public Policy and the Future of Nuclear Power: R&D and Subsidy Support

9. Nuclear Regulatory Issues

10. Alternative Reactor Designs

Part III: The Competitive Context

11. Nuclear Competition: Demand Side

12. Nuclear Competition: Supply Side

13. Global Warning and Nuclear Power

Part IV: Conclusion

14. Findings

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Related Subjects

American Studies
Economics
Energy Policy
Environmental Studies
Sociology
Social Theory

33079/33080(ZL/DG/AV)

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