What You Didn't Learn Watching the Oppenheimer Blockbuster
Addressing existential questions don't fit Hollywood’s business model
As part of the fall program of Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI), I'll be presenting and facilitating three sessions titled What You Didn't Learn Watching “Oppenheimer” on October 29, November 5, and 12 at 10:00 AM. The name in the title refers to the Hollywood blockbuster, not the person.
The following is the course description, as I proposed it:
What You Didn't Learn Watching Oppenheimer
Explore J. Robert Oppenheimer's legacy beyond the silver screen's interpretation. After a brief, non-technical introduction to nuclear physics, we’ll explore the complexities that arose from the Manhattan Project, including the intriguing and lesser-known departure of Joseph Rotblat, the 1995 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. We'll also cover pivotal reports such as the Franck and Acheson-Lilienthal reports, and the risks of proliferation of nuclear technology through both peaceful and military means. The course will highlight recent reports by the Academy of Sciences, the Congressional Research Service, and the scientific literature. There will be opportunities to discuss the ethical and technological dilemmas that have confronted humanity since the dawn of the nuclear age. Examine the role (if any) of nuclear energy in a world marked by poverty and inequality as we enter the Anthropocene, a geological period set apart by profound human impact on Earth's climate and ecosystems.
Recent events make the topics covered in this course more relevant than ever. The following issues come to mind:
Nuclear war flash points:
Russia-Ukraine
Iran-Israel
China-Taiwan
Recent climate-catastrophe-fueled hurricanes Helene and Milton;
These follow other extreme weather events that many have already forgotten, such as:
More important than record-breaking events that make up the daily news are the long-term trends. Those are less spectacular and therefore rarely covered: “the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events are increasing.”
The 2024 Nobel Peace Prize for Nihon Hidankyo, while, as this press release mentions:
The nuclear powers are modernizing and upgrading their arsenals; new countries appear to be preparing to acquire nuclear weapons; and threats are being made to use nuclear weapons in ongoing warfare.
When I proposed this course, I had to come up with an assignment for the first class session:
What was Project Orion and why was it shelved?
Fortunately, OLLI courses involve no grading. Indeed, I've been saved by retirement,—phew—just in time! The answer to that question is simple to find in Project Orion (nuclear propulsion). Here it is:
The U.S. Air Force, DARPA, and NASA were perfectly happy to fund yet another “technically sweet” project without thinking through the societal implications; and
Nuclear propulsion of Project Orion was made impossible after the United States signed and ratified the (Partial) Test Ban Treaty in 1963. Also, the outlandish applications of thermonuclear blasts described in Project Plowshare bit the dust.
Some of the key players in Project Orion were Stanislav Ulam and Freeman Dyson, who will feature in the course. Someone who is not, but certainly deserves a special mention, is Werner von Braun, a leading Nazi rocket scientist and a beneficiary of Operation Paperclip, yet another once-secret project of the U.S. Intelligence Community.
These topics will not be in the course, and you might ask why I bring them up. The answer is contained in Oppenheimer's term “technically sweet.” This phrase comes from Oppenheimer's testimony during the disgraceful U.S. Atomic Energy Commission's security clearance hearings, where he discussed the mindset of scientists.
When you see something that is technically sweet you go ahead and do it…
Oppenheimer may have intended this as an observation of the nature of scientists rather than a justification. Who knows? What we do know is that this certainly is not how Joseph Rotblat thought. He wrote:
To a large extent the nuclear arms race was driven by scientists. … mainly to satisfy their inflated egos, or for the intense exhilaration experienced in exploring new technical concepts.
This is a complete perversion of the lofty ideals of science. It is a severe, but justified, indictment of members of a highly respected group in society.
Rotblat’s accusation, which I share, brings to mind a philosophical statement by Bertrand Russell to which I also wholeheartedly subscribe:
The philosophy of nature is one thing; the philosophy of value is quite another. Nothing but great harm has come of confusing the two.
Keeping this kind of confusion at bay will be a key challenge in What You Didn't Learn Watching “Oppenheimer,” and I'm looking forward to the stimulating discussions ahead.
Suggested resources
Having given away the answer to the first assignment, I offer the following list as a substitute. The film Oppenheimer is based on item #1, but the book is far more comprehensive and more relevant to questions facing humanity today. Item #2 is of current interest. Item #3 is of special relevance to the ongoing situation with Iran, as is item #4. Item #5 provides a good starting point for discussing nuclear energy’s role in the climate crisis. Item #6 provides a comprehensive discussion of issues and personalities. Items #7 and #8 highlight the hidden and often overlooked victims of modern warfare—suppressed information and blind spots in human perception. Items #9 and #10 are for those who want to delve deeply into the technical aspects of nuclear energy, mostly beyond what the course will cover.
American Prometheus, Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin
Gambling with Armageddon, Martin J. Sherwin
Remembrances of Dirac, V. Gilinsky
Ethics of Nuclear Energy in Times of Climate Change: Escaping the Collective Action Problem Simon Friederich, Maarten Boudry
Not just Oppenheimer, F. von Hippel
Atomic Cover-up, Greg Mitcchell
Advanced Nuclear Reactors: Technology Overview and Current Issues, Congressional Research Service, Mark Holt
Laying the Foundation for New and Advanced Nuclear Reactors in the United States, National Academies of Sciences
This course looks like fun! Let me know if you can use a teaching assistant/sherpa. I remember since The Clamshell Alliance demonstrations in Seabrook NH,, the idea that nuclear energy is inextricably linked to nuclear weapons production - it’s the domestic face to the weapon’s endgame. FWIW, I could go on about the circle of poison in the stinky, leaking production devastation from mining to enrichment and the corrupted waste sarcophagus and broad brush racism of test policy.
-end rant…