Substitution does not obviate the problem of

scarcity, however; although it does make the problem

less severe and shifts the burden from one material to

several. While materials often are interchangeable over

broad ranges, there exist many uses in which certain

materials enjoy overwhelming advantages. Copper instead

of the more bulky aluminum is much better adapted to

electric circuitry miniaturization, for example; and

steel has no close substitute where great strength on

a large scale is essential. Substantial increases in

cost might be required to bring about the substitution

of one material for another in many uses, and for

other materials there may be no comparable substitute.7

Although real cost increases result in substitution

and sometimes have been viewed as a partial solution

to materials problems, the nature of the problem itself

is one of higher costs; the problem cannot be viewed as

its own solution; it usually is better to have more than

less, and lower costs than higher.

 Growth also would be possible even if material

production in general were not to increase as rapidly


 Note that the reinforcing material used in the
headquarters buildings of the major aluminum companies
is steel.

 Steel costs would have to rise substantially
before other materials would be substituted for it in
heavy structures such as buildings and bridges, for
example; and manganese has no close substitute in the
production of quality steel.