Introduction : conceiving of alternative energy
Human society's need for energy
The industrial revolution and humans' high-energy existence
Against the American grain : paths taken, paths declined
The 1970s initiate an energy transition
Assessing renewable and alternative energy technologies
Appendix 1: Summaries of U.S. legislation provisions related to alternative energy
Appendix 2: President Jimmy Carter's speech concerning energy, April 18, 1977
Appendix 3: President Jimmy Carter : the "crisis of confidence" speech, July 15, 1979
Appendix 4: Former Vice President Al Gore at New York University, July 17, 2008.
