Break them down and reuse the parts. Coal is too difficult to dig up and transport to give us energy in the amounts we need; nuclear fission is judged to be too dangerous; the technical breakthrough toward nuclear fusion that we hoped for never took place; and solar batteries are too expensive to maintain on the earth's surface in sufficient quantity Anyone older than ten can remember automobiles. They dwindled. At first the price of ed --- way up. Finally, only the well-to-do drove, and that was too clear an ication that they were filthy rich, so any automobile that dared show itself on a city street was overturned and burned. Rationing was introduced to"equalize sacrifice", but every three months the ration was reduced. The cars just vanished and became part of the metal resource There are many advantages, if you want to look for them. Our 1997 newspapers continually int them out. The air is cleaner and there seem to be fewer colds. Against most predictions, the crime rate has dropped With the police car too expensive(and too easy a target), policemen are back on their beats. More important, the streets are full. Legs are king in the cities of 1997, and people walk everywhere far into the night. Even the parks are full, and there is mutual protection in crowds If the weather isn't too cold, people sit out front. If it is hot, the open air is the only ai conditioning they get. And at least the street lights still burn. Indoors, electricity is scarce, and few people can afford to keep lights burning after supper. As for the winter-- well, it is inconvenient be cold. with most of what furnace fuel is allowed hoarded for the dawn. but sweaters are popular indoor wear and showers are not an everyday luxury Lukewarm sponge baths will do and if the air is not al ways very fragrant in the human vicinity, the automobile fumes are gone There is some consolation in the city that it is worse in the suburbs. The suburbs were born with the auto, lived with the auto, and are dying with the auto. One way out for the suburbanites is to form associations that assign turns to the procurement and distribution of food Pushcarts creak from house to house along the posh suburban roads, and every bad snowstorm is a disaster. It isnt easy to hoard enough food to last till the roads are open. There is not much in the way of refrigeration except for the snow-banks, and then the dogs must be fought off. What energy is left cannot be directed into personal comfort. The nation must survive until new energy sources are found, so it is the railroads and subways that are receiving major attention The railroads must move the coal that is the immediate hope, and the subways can best move the people. And then, of course, energy must be conserved for agriculture. The great car factories make trucks and farm machinery almost exclusively. We can huddle together when there is a lack of warmth, fan ourselves should there be no cooling breeze, sleep or make love at such times there is a lack of light -- but nothing will for long ameliorate a lack of food. The American population isn't going up much any more, but the food supply must be kept high even though the prices and difficulty of distribution force each American to eat less. Food is needed for export so that we can pay for some trickle of oil and for other reso The rest of the world, of course, is not as lucky e are. Some cynics say that it is the 第8页共11页第 8 页 共 11 页 Break them down and reuse the parts. Coal is too difficult to dig up and transport to give us energy in the amounts we need; nuclear fission is judged to be too dangerous; the technical breakthrough toward nuclear fusion that we hoped for never took place; and solar batteries are too expensive to maintain on the earth's surface in sufficient quantity. Anyone older than ten can remember automobiles. They dwindled. At first the price of gasoline climbed --- way up. Finally, only the well-to-do drove, and that was too clear an indication that they were filthy rich, so any automobile that dared show itself on a city street was overturned and burned. Rationing was introduced to "equalize sacrifice", but every three months the ration was reduced. The cars just vanished and became part of the metal resource. There are many advantages, if you want to look for them. Our 1997 newspapers continually point them out. The air is cleaner and there seem to be fewer colds. Against most predictions, the crime rate has dropped. With the police car too expensive (and too easy a target), policemen are back on their beats. More important, the streets are full. Legs are king in the cities of 1997, and people walk everywhere far into the night. Even the parks are full, and there is mutual protection in crowds. If the weather isn't too cold, people sit out front. If it is hot, the open air is the only air conditioning they get. And at least the street lights still burn. Indoors, electricity is scarce, and few people can afford to keep lights burning after supper. As for the winter --- well, it is inconvenient to be cold, with most of what furnace fuel is allowed hoarded for the dawn. But sweaters are popular indoor wear and showers are not an everyday luxury. Lukewarm sponge baths will do, and if the air is not always very fragrant in the human vicinity, the automobile fumes are gone. There is some consolation in the city that it is worse in the suburbs. The suburbs were born with the auto, lived with the auto, and are dying with the auto. One way out for the suburbanites is to form associations that assign turns to the procurement and distribution of food. Pushcarts creak from house to house along the posh suburban roads, and every bad snowstorm is a disaster. It isn't easy to hoard enough food to last till the roads are open. There is not much in the way of refrigeration except for the snow-banks, and then the dogs must be fought off. What energy is left cannot be directed into personal comfort. The nation must survive until new energy sources are found, so it is the railroads and subways that are receiving major attention. The railroads must move the coal that is the immediate hope, and the subways can best move the people. And then, of course, energy must be conserved for agriculture. The great car factories make trucks and farm machinery almost exclusively. We can huddle together when there is a lack of warmth, fan ourselves should there be no cooling breeze, sleep or make love at such times as there is a lack of light --- but nothing will for long ameliorate a lack of food. The American population isn't going up much any more, but the food supply must be kept high even though the prices and difficulty of distribution force each American to eat less. Food is needed for export so that we can pay for some trickle of oil and for other resources. The rest of the world, of course, is not as lucky as we are. Some cynics say that it is the