Modern civilization depends largely on energy. Without it, our lives would be reduced to the level of a caveman's. We would have nothing to power the equipment we rely on to get on with our daily lives. Life would in a way come to a standstill without energy. Without wood, we would not even be able to light fires for warmth or fire for cooking food. Our days would be spent huddling together in caves for warmth with only raw meat and vegetables to eat. This is a stark picture but it shows how vital energy is for human beings.
             Human progress has been closely linked to the discovery of new means of producing power. At first, man could only burn wood for heat. Later mankind learned how to use coal. By the 1700s, we discovered steam and which has brought to the industrial revolution that launched mankind towards our modern technological society. Since then many ways of producing power have been developed including oil, gas, nuclear and solar energy. From the time mankind discovered energy till today, energy consumption has increased more than a hundredfold. The illustration below shows clearly the increasing energy consumption since the stone ages.
             Before we look into why nuclear energy is the best resource, we should look into the problems faced by current techniques of producing power.
             Problems With Current Energy Resources
             Till today, 78% of the world's energy is derived from the burning of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels include petroleum, natural gas, and coal. As a result, fossil fuels are being depleted at rates 100,000 times faster than they are being formed. The remaining recoverable fossil fuel in the world is thought to be about 10 trillion barrels of oil, enough to last mankind another 170 years at present consumption rates. This is likely to become less as the consumption rate will certainly increase. However this supply will eventually run out one day.
             With the heavy use of fossil fuels in today's energ...