Christopher Flavin and Nicholas Lenssen

Christopher Flavin is senior vice president at the World- watch Institute, an organization that monitors the environmental health of the planet. Nicholas Lenssen is a private energy analyst and a former senior researcher at the World- watch Institute. In the following viewpoint, Flavin and Lenssen argue that the world no longer views nuclear power as a viable energy alternative. The authors contend that nuclear accidents have caused the public to view nuclear power as dangerous. In fact, the authors claim that although Asia is continuing to develop nuclear power capabilities, the United States and Europe are shutting down their nuclear power plants and have cancelled plans to build new ones.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. How much of the world’s electricity do nuclear power...