Lecture 1

Overview of Course

• Facts
• History  / Personalities
• Nuclear Physics
• Bomb Design
• Effects of Nuclear Weapons
• Aftermath of Nuclear Testing
• Ethical/Diplomatic Issues
• Nuclear/Chemical/Bilogical Terrorism
• Future Prospects

1. Physics of the Bomb
   

   We will discuss the physical and theoretical aspects of nuclear bomb construction and implementation.  Such information will span a wide breadth of physical knowledge--from the movement and alteration of atomic particles to the larger effects of force and pressure on entire communities.

2. Technical Design of the Bomb
   

   We will consider the movements, both theoretical and historic, that preceded the construction of the first nuclear bomb.  Further, we will discuss the evolution and adjustment of bomb construction as it adapts to modern issues.

3. Medical Consequences
   

   1. We will discuss the biological consequences of bomb blast and radiation.  We will consider the historical methods for damage prevention, as well as the current need to understand long-term effects.
   2. Lethal effects of radiation can be summarized briefly: a very high dose (5000 rads +) causes death in hours; a smaller but lethal dose (400 rads +): death in weeks. In the latter case, sickness starts with diarrhea and vomiting, followed by some temporary improvement, and then the same symptoms recur with the addition of hemorrhage, anemia, infections, and a slow death.
   3. The U.S. "Federal Emergency Management Agency" predicts approximately 86,000,000 people dead and 34,000,000 severely injured in the United States.  There are about  2,000,000 hospital beds in Canada and U.S.A. combined.

4. Weapons Testing

   We will consider the crucial role of weapons testing both to the development of nuclear bombs, as well as its pivotal role in international affairs.

5. Ecological Consequences of Fall-out

   We will investigate and debate the ecological consequences of fall-out, the current measures to combat them, and the future considerations with regards to nuclear power.

6. International Nuclear Weapon Treaties

   1. We will discuss the value and effect of international treaties.  We will see the history of such treaties, consider their effectiveness, and discuss potential for future, efficacious cooperative efforts.
   2. Treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons (1968)  Click for full text.
      1. Entered into force March 5, 1970
      2. The States concluding this Treaty, hereinafter referred to as the "Parties to the Treaty,"
      3. "Considering the devastation that would be visited upon all mankind by a nuclear war and the consequent need to make every effort to avert the danger of such a war and to take measures to safeguard the security of peoples ... believing that the proliferation of nuclear weapons would seriously enhance the danger of nuclear war ... In conformity with resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly ... calling for the conclusion of an agreement on the prevention of wider dissemination of nuclear weapons."

7. Moral and Ethical Conflicts and Responsibilities

   1. Personal Conflict - feeling responsibility to one's country or humanity as a whole.
      
   2. Personal Conscience - conflict with one's sense of morality; e.g. “Thou shalt not kill.”
   3. Conflicts between Professional Ethics and Career -- e.g. work as a chemist.
      

8. WMDs and Terrorism

   We will consider the prominence of weapons of mass destruction and their use in modern terrorism.  We will consider historical efforts to combat them, as well as current preventative measures that are in development.

9. Chemical and Biological Weapons

   We will consider the breadth of WMD, which include both chemical and biological weapons.  We will consider the unique properties of such weapons, and the subsequent unique treatment they must receive.