Engineering Manhattan style: Sandia Laboratories as an example of postwar engineering
A great deal has been written about the history of science in America since World War II. Much of that work has explored the government`s research and development establishment, focusing on the scientific community immediately after the war. It is generally argued that the apparent triumphs of the huge and expensive wartime research and development projects gave rise to a belief that scientific resources should be nurtured and kept on hand - ready to provide service in an emergency. The Cold War drive for more and better weapons further fed this belief, leading to a massive system of national laboratories, military laboratories, and defense industries. The science of this complex is built on extensive financial support, the central strategy of which is that by steadily, and occasionally even lavishly funding large research programs, you will have a constant stream of scientific ideas that can be applied to national security purposes. What is true of science, is also true, in slightly modified form, of postwar engineering. The story I want to tell you today is, I think, an example of the way Cold War engineering r&d for national security worked. This report describes aspects of the Sandia National Laboratories.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-94AL85000
- OSTI ID:
- 366480
- Report Number(s):
- SAND--96-2017C; CONF-9608124--1; ON: DE96014069
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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