Date of Award
Spring 1982
Document Type
Restricted Thesis
Terms of Use
© 1982 Lauren Gabor. All rights reserved. Access to this work is restricted to users within the Swarthmore College network and may only be used for non-commercial, educational, and research purposes. Sharing with users outside of the Swarthmore College network is expressly prohibited. For all other uses, including reproduction and distribution, please contact the copyright holder.
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
History Department
First Advisor
James A. Field, Jr.
Abstract
Using a personal interview and an array of memoirs, articles, and secondary sources, Gabor organizes her argument to explain why, by the end of World War II, refugee physicists who had worked on the creation of the atom bomb had no input on the government’s uses of it. She discusses the divide among scientists as to their place in the military structure, some extremely vocal with their unwanted opinions, others resigned to do the work and go home. She places the work of the scientists in the context of a larger political sphere, and notes that the creation of nuclear weapons brought a new relationship between science and the government, one where science is used to achieve political ends.
Recommended Citation
Gabor, Lauren , '82, "The Physicists, the United States Government, and the Decision to Use the Atom Bomb: Whose Responsibility?" (1982). Senior Theses, Projects, and Awards. 492.
https://works.swarthmore.edu/theses/492