Abstract After a long period of post-Cold War stability, the risks posed by nuclear weapons are increasing sharply. This is marked by the invasion of Ukraine, a nuclear generation of Russian nuclear weapons, expansion of China’s nuclear arsenal and tensions over Taiwan, missile testing by North Korea and uranium enrichment by Iran, and a major […]
Abstract 80 years ago, Robert Oppenheimer led an industrial scale effort with more than 130,000 employees to create the nuclear fission weapons used to end World War II. With the United States and its allies facing totalitarian aggressors in the European and Pacific theaters, many elite scientists, engineers, and technicians supported the Manhattan Project through […]
Abstract With the end of the Cold War and the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the public, including most physicists, and Congress, assumed, the danger of a nuclear war had ended as well.Unfortunately, that has not been the case. Indeed, the danger of accidental nuclear war may be increasing. US and Russian strategic missiles remain […]
Abstract Physicists invented nuclear weapons over seventy-five years ago. Today, they still threaten humanity with catastrophe and, recently, this risk has been increasing. The US has over 1,500 deployed nuclear weapons plus thousands more inactive or retired. Current policy calls for maintaining and “modernizing” about 4,000 nuclear warheads and their delivery vehicles, at the cost […]
This webinar delves into the multifaceted dimensions of the contemporary nuclear arms race, offering in-depth analyses from three of the world's nuclear powers. Experts will explore the motivations, defense policies, and diplomatic postures of the United States, Russia, and China, providing the audience with a comprehensive understanding of each nation's policies and perspective. The […]
Abstract Eighty years ago, Robert Oppenheimer led an industrial-scale effort with more than 130,000 employees to create the nuclear fission weapons used to end World War II. With the United States and its allies facing totalitarian aggressors in the European and Pacific theaters, many elite scientists, engineers and technicians supported the Manhattan Project through their […]
Colloquium Abstract: Physicists invented nuclear weapons over seventy-five years ago. Today, they still threaten humanity with catastrophe and, recently, this risk has been increasing. The US has over 1,500 deployed nuclear weapons plus thousands more inactive or retired. Current policy calls for maintaining and “modernizing” about 4,000 nuclear warheads and their delivery vehicles, at the cost of […]
Colloquium Abstract The world is in a precarious place right now and nuclear risk is higher than it has been in decades. The war in Ukraine has brought latent fears about nuclear war back to the surface. In recent years, the US has withdrawn from several arms control agreements that constrained US and Russian arsenals, […]
Title: U.S. Missile Defense Programs: A Case Study in the Interaction of Science, Technology, and Public Policy Abstract During the past 70 years, the United States has spent $400 billion on ballistic missile defense, mostly on systems intended to intercept nuclear-armed intercontinental-range missiles that might be launched against the United States. But would these systems […]
Speaker: Dr. Stewart Prager This talk is part of the Twelve Thousand Bombs seminar series. The series on nuclear weapons included four eminent scholars and public figures speaking at ISU. The series, sponsored by the Office of Research and Graduate Studies, was inaugurated in 2023 and aims to raise awareness of nuclear weapons issues in […]
Abstract In this talk, I will give a brief overview of the resurgent role of nuclear weapons in national security strategies, the threat that they pose to the public, and potential risk mitigation approaches. Recent events, including the U.S. withdrawal from arms control treaties and the pursuit of new nuclear weapons capabilities in the nine […]
Speaker: Dr. Stewart Prager More information will be available closer to the event.
