The Manhattan Project | Scientific Achievement vs Ethical Responsibility

The Manhattan Project | Scientific Achievement vs Ethical Responsibility

It was still dark. The group of men felt the breeze getting warmer as the eastern horizon began to show signs of light. One of the men, tall with no expression, watched as final preparations were made to a large object in front of the group.

The others saw the anxiety in his face in a way that only those had had been around him could discern. The man walked forward, spoke with some of the technicians, and watched them haul it away. It was going to a tower, visible in the distance. Conversations around him continued, but only because it seemed like they had to. Somehow, the silence would have been louder.

Not long after, notifications came from the tower; an all clear was given. At 5:29 a.m., a flash of light that was so brilliant it could be seen from 200 miles away blossomed in the desert. The mushroom cloud rose 40,000 feet into the air, and the shock wave was felt 100 miles from ground zero. The man who all that morning had worn no expression, would later recall remembering a Hindu scripture in that moment: "Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds."

Another man who witnessed the test described the overwhelming impression it left: "A new thing had just been born; a new control; a new understanding of man, which man had acquired over nature." Another observer said, "The lighting effects beggared description. The whole country was lighted by a searing light with the intensity many times that of the midday sun."

Humanity had crossed a threshold.

___

Join us as we show you the Manhattan Project, the reason behind the development of nuclear weapons, and the ethical implications of such an invention.


Avsnitt(408)

Pop Quiz | Fact Checkers Gone?

Pop Quiz | Fact Checkers Gone?

Join the team as they discuss recent news about fact-checkers in social media. Be sure to tune in next Thursday for the 15-Minute History Podcast's first segment for kids, Sketches in History!

23 Jan 6min

Inauguration Special! | Interview with Brad Meltzer & Josh Mensch

Inauguration Special! | Interview with Brad Meltzer & Josh Mensch

With today being Inauguration Day in the United States, Joe and I are bringing you a special interview with authors Brad Meltzer and Josh Mensch. Their new book, The JFK Conspiracy: The Secret Plot to Kill Kennedy - and Why it Failed, is narrative history at its finest and tells a largely unknown story of the first plot to assassinate President John F. Kennedy during his transition to the White House in 1960.

20 Jan 48min

Special Christmas Episode | The History of the Nativity

Special Christmas Episode | The History of the Nativity

The imagery of Jesus' birth has evolved over the century, but its meaning to all humanity remains as simple as ever in this holiday season. Special thanks to my Uncle Matt for giving me the idea for this episode! - Jon

23 Dec 20247min

Pop Quiz | An Inconsequential War?

Pop Quiz | An Inconsequential War?

It's time for a pop quiz! Join us as Joe and I talk through the idea of a war without consequences and discuss Australia's fight with emus and the "Whiskey War" of 1973-2022.

19 Dec 20248min

S.O.B.s | A Discussion on American Foreign Policy in the Cold War

S.O.B.s | A Discussion on American Foreign Policy in the Cold War

Join us for our discussion on the morality and long-term consequences of America's Cold War-era foreign policy and the lessons we can learn from it today.

16 Dec 202434min

Pop Quiz | Populism and American Politics

Pop Quiz | Populism and American Politics

It's time for a Pop Quiz! Join us as Joe and I discuss the evolution of populism in the United States and how it both reflected and has reshaped our political system.

12 Dec 202411min

S.O.B.s | American Foreign Policy in the Cold War

S.O.B.s | American Foreign Policy in the Cold War

The benefits of hindsight let us examine faults in national policy through the lens of what followed. But in the midst of a global threat of nuclear war, the United States chose to support vicious dictators in the name of anti-communism. Were they right or wrong? Did it save humanity from death in atomic fire? Was this a good idea or a bad idea?

9 Dec 202416min

Pop Quiz | Censorship, then and now

Pop Quiz | Censorship, then and now

It's time for a Pop Quiz! Join us as Jon covers the roots of censorship in the McCarthy era and after the 9/11 attacks and compares them to current-day calls for limiting free speech in America.

5 Dec 20243min

Populärt inom Historia

massmordarpodden
historiska-brott
p3-historia
olosta-mord
historiepodden-se
motiv
historianu-med-urban-lindstedt
rss-massmordarpodden
krigshistoriepodden
nu-blir-det-historia
militarhistoriepodden
rss-borgvattnets-hemligheter
harrisons-dramatiska-historia
palmemordet
rss-seriemordarpodden
rss-folkets-historia
vetenskapsradion-historia
rss-brottshistoria
rss-historiens-mysterier
rss-historiskt-skvaller