The bomb (part 1): were nuclear weapons inevitable?
Economist Podcasts16 Juli 2025

The bomb (part 1): were nuclear weapons inevitable?

Where did the world’s most devastating weapon come from? In a four-part series, we go behind the scenes at America's nuclear laboratories to understand how a scientific-mystery story about the ingredients of matter led to a world-changing (and second-world-war-ending) bomb less than five decades later.


Nuclear weapons have been central to geopolitical power ever since. Now America is seeking to modernise its stockpile and, in doing so, its scientists are pushing the frontiers of extreme physics, materials science and computing.


In episode one, we look at the birth of nuclear physics—the science that emerged early in the 20th century to answer a mystery: what is an atom actually made of?


Host: Alok Jha, The Economist’s science and technology editor. Contributors: Frank Close, a physicist and author of “Destroyer of Worlds”, a history of the birth of nuclear physics; Cheryl Rofer, a chemist who used to work at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL); and Nicholas Lewis, a historian at LANL.


This episode features archive from the Atomic Heritage Foundation.


Listen to episode two here.


Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts.


This is a free episode. To continue listening to “The Bomb”, you’ll need to subscribe.


Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.


For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Avsnitt(1958)

Food for thought: raising the world’s IQ

Food for thought: raising the world’s IQ

If you don’t have enough food in the first 1,000 days of your life, your brain may never reach its full potential. Our correspondent discusses what better nutrition would mean for the world. Undersea ...

17 Juli 202422min

Lost in stagnation? Japan’s economic paradox

Lost in stagnation? Japan’s economic paradox

After decades of torpor, is Japan recovering its dynamism? Our correspondent turns to an ancient bento box merchant to test Japan’s economic future. A new study shows how few therapies tested on anima...

16 Juli 202421min

An assassination attempt: what next for America?

An assassination attempt: what next for America?

After the shocking attempt to kill former President Donald Trump, how will America respond? Though leaders have called for calm, the risk is that an already hate-filled campaign could take a darker tu...

15 Juli 202419min

An officer and a gen AI: the future of war

An officer and a gen AI: the future of war

Artificial intelligence is already making a difference in the theatre of war, and more involvement will certainly come. That raises a host of thorny ethical issues. In some cases, scientists just cloc...

12 Juli 202426min

Bidin’: will Joe go or no?

Bidin’: will Joe go or no?

Democrats’ worried murmurs have become public statements. Polls give Donald Trump a widening lead. Why won’t President Biden make way for a younger successor? Off Colombia’s coast a shipwreck bursting...

11 Juli 202422min

Change of heart surgeon: Iran’s reformist president

Change of heart surgeon: Iran’s reformist president

Masoud Pezeshkian rode to victory on a promise of reforms that Iran’s people seem desperately to want. Will the former heart surgeon be permitted to carry them out? Ukraine has been getting a wartime ...

10 Juli 202423min

Holey alliance: NATO’s worries at 75

Holey alliance: NATO’s worries at 75

It was formed to unite the world’s strongest countries and preserve peace, but as NATO holds a celebration summit for its 75th anniversary, it faces tricky challenges. Climate change is jeopardising S...

9 Juli 202423min

Lurch in the left: France’s election shock

Lurch in the left: France’s election shock

A tactical ploy to diminish the chances for Marine Le Pen’s hard-right National Rally has worked—a surprise result that puts the left in front, but no party in charge. Despite sporting passions in Afr...

8 Juli 202424min

Populärt inom Politik & nyheter

svenska-fall
p3-krim
aftonbladet-krim
spar
fordomspodden
rss-krimstad
flashback-forever
rss-vad-fan-hande
aftonbladet-daily
motiv
rss-sanning-konsekvens
krimmagasinet
politiken
rss-krimreportrarna
rss-frandfors-horna
kungligt
grans
rss-flodet
dagens-eko
sydsvenskan-dok