write 100 word or more on The public discussion about alternative energy is often reduced to an assessment of its monetary costs versus those of traditional fossil fuels, often in comparison to their carbon footprints. This kind of reductionism to a simple monetary metric obscures the complex issues surrounding the potential viability, scalability, feasibility, and suitability of pursuing specific alter- native technology paths. Although money is nec- essary to develop alternative energy, money is simply a token for mobilizing a range of resources used to produce energy