
American Management Association
www.amanet.org
187
CHAPTER 11
Energy and Education
D
uring the early years of the cold war era, the United States fell behind
in an important race with its most dangerous adversary. On October 4,
1957, the Soviet Union successfully launched its globelike Sputnik sat-
ellite into an elliptical orbit around our planet. Using just a radio beacon’s
beeping to signal its position as it reached heights of 583 miles (939 kilome-
ters), the world’s first artificial moon changed the course of human history.
When Americans first learned about Sputnik, many felt alarmed that the
Soviets now had the rocket power and technology to