Walter Zinn’s words amidst twelve pages of dense technical verbiage: “It may be acceptable in the early development of the industry to place as the first goal reactor power plants which are competitive in an economic sense with the coal-fired plants. Success in this inevitably will bring a demand for an increased utilization of the nuclear raw material. … It is equally clear that in the matter of the utilization of raw materials nuclear technology is in a most embryonic state.” Meaning what?
Context is everything. Zinn is smitten with the promise of fast breeder reactors to deliver near-infinite electricity. Translate the above as follows: “Right now we don’t need breeders. But if I’m right and nuclear power takes off, we’ll run out of uranium. Build breeder reactors now!”