Atomic Euphoria

Considering how nuclear weapons are viewed today, t is somewhat strange how much of cultural icon the atomic bomb was, both in America and the Soviet Union. The atomic bomb was a symbol of hope for the Soviet Union and for communism. Atomic energy and science was to be a panacea for economic and social problems. The idea that atomic science could better mankind is quite interesting. This technology is not viewed the same way today, at least not in my experience. Even nuclear power is treated with skepticism and often regarded as dangerous.

There were few controls on atomic research and science. In the Soviet Union, economic and political advancement were the main concern. Because of this safety and health were not prioritized. The power of the atomic bomb, both as a weapon and as a symbol seems to resulted in the scientists becoming arrogant. The importance of the bomb in Soviet culture gave these scientists a powerful position and the scientists were able to act with little restraint upon them. There was no public access or check upon their power and thus the arrogance of the scientists had a price. The Soviet engineers and scientists were not accountable to society, but only to a select group of party officials.

Soviet scientists such as Kurchatov and Sakharov sought to influence Soviet politics.n Kurchatov wanted to ban atmospheric testing and lessen Cold War tension. Sakharov was a spokesman for arms control., despite his involvement in the development of the hydrogen bomb. Rather than speak of a war between capitalism and communism, atomic science was used by these scientists as a way to unite people, rather than divide.

The power and influence of nuclear science and scientists is evident through how they were able to resist encroachments against their research like Lysenkoism with genetics. Physicists knew that the standard modern view of genetics was correct, not Lysenko's. Atomic scientists were able to hold views in complete contrast to Lysenkoism and suffer no consequences. Physics even helped to revive genetics and protect geneticists.