Postcard from Space If you had told Franklin Roosevelt that Americans would soon be walking on the moon, he would surely have thought you were joking. The mainframe computer suddenly makes it a reality.

	End of an Era? The World Trade Center is New York's last great skyscraper, but it struggles with vacancy. The city barely avoids default and bankruptcy in 1975, after President Ford declines to provide a federal bailout (lower left). Still, the swank restaurant on the top of the Trade Towers provides a splendid view. In Detroit, the Renaissance Center is another bold attempt to revitalize a great American city. In later years, it too suffers from vacancy.
	Spreading Contagion The problems in New York and Detroit are symptomatic of a more general decline of cities all across the Northeast. Most are bleeding residents to surrounding suburbs, where crime is low, and graffiti doesn't bloom overnight on every vertical surface. in the map above, the ORANGE shows the extent of urban sprawl, while the RED indicates decay in urban centers. With manufacturing in decline, cities built during the earlier manufacturing boom are saddled with structures and housing units no longer needed.