The development and use of the atomic bomb was a turning point in history. It seems so obvious—the world was changed, a new age dawned. But this was not the first turning point, nor the last. History is littered with critical moments, crossroads, watersheds and points of decision. Each brings a new sense of urgency, [...]
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Posted 31 July 2003
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atomic age § history of australian science § theses
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Also tagged: atomic bomb, Australia, David Rivett, Edwin James Brady, Geoffrey Duffield, history of science, HV McKay, Littleton Groom, Mark Oliphant, Mount Stromlo, progress, science, secrets, spies, weather
It’s rare for a book relating to the history of Australian science to draw the attention of the national media. But Australia’s Bid for the Atomic Bomb made the front page with its claims that the origins of major institutions such as the Snowy Scheme and the ANU could be found in the government’s frustrated [...]
Secrets are seductive. They offer knowledge, power, belonging – initiation into a world neatly divided into the knowing and the unknowing, us and them. The atomic bomb was revealed to an unsuspecting public as evidence of humankind’s increasing knowledge of the ‘secrets of nature’, but such secrets were not for sharing, they were a ‘sacred [...]
The clouds of radioactive fallout are descending and humanity is doomed to extinction. In Nevil Shute’s book, On the Beach, the inhabitants of Melbourne await their end – the final victims of a 37 day nuclear war that has destroyed the northern hemisphere. John Osborne, played by Fred Astaire in the film version, decides to [...]
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Posted 01 July 1996
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atomic age § conference presentations
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Also tagged: AAEC, ANU, ASIO, atomic bomb, Bikini Atoll, Cold War, crossroads, CSIRO, David Rivett, Emu Field, George Briggs, Les Martin, Lucas Heights, Maralinga, Mark Oliphant, Monte Bello Islands, progress, secrets, uranium, Woomera
