Time Schedule:
Bruce W Hevly
HIST 215
Seattle Campus
History of the atomic bomb from the beginning of nuclear physics to the security hearing of J. Robert Oppenheimer. Includes a study of the scientific achievements that made the bomb possible, the decision to deploy the bomb, the moral misgivings of the scientists involved.
Class description
This course is concerned with the development and use of nuclear weapons from the beginning of the twentieth century to the first substantive arms control efforts in the early 1960s. We will pay particular attention to World War II's anglo-american Manhattan Project, including the history of the Hanford Engineering Works in eastern Washington, and to nuclear weapons projects in Nazi Germany.
The three main intellectual axes of the course are: the science and the symobolisms associated with nuclear technology (that is, the transformative power of the atom); the rise of air power in American military doctrines; discussions of ethics in the public sphere from the interwar period to the postwar period.
Student learning goals
General method of instruction
Class time is devoted mainly to lectures. Weekly section meetings allow for discussions of readings, focused work on writing assignments and exam preparation.
Recommended preparation
No special preparation in history or science will be assumed. This is meant to be an introductory course.
Class assignments and grading
