The Transition to the Nuclear Age and Non-Proliferation Diplomacy

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers the historical transition from international open science to militarised secrecy, the strategic motivations for nuclear development in Britain and North Korea, the military and political factors surrounding the usage of atomic bombs in WWII, and Ireland's diplomatic role in the NPT.

Hahn & Strassmann

The scientists who discovered nuclear fission in Berlin in $1938$, marking the key turning point from open to closed science.

Manhattan Project

A US-led, classified, and militarised state-controlled project from $1942-45$ that institutionalised closed science and produced the first atomic bombs.

Joliot-Curies

French scientists who, in $1939$, engaged in state-backed atomic research involving secret purchases of heavy water from Norway.

Einstein (1905)

Author of the mass-energy equivalence theory, which made atomic weapons theoretically feasible.

Thomson (1897)

The scientist who discovered the electron at the Cavendish Lab, Cambridge, launching the field of atomic physics.

Rutherford (1911)

The physicist who discovered the nucleus and mentored other significant figures like Bohr and Chadwick.

Chadwick (1932)

The scientist who discovered the neutron, enabling the artificial splitting of the atom.

Leo Szilard

A Hungarian-born physicist who pioneered the voluntary closure of open science in March $1939$ by urging scientists not to publish fission details.

Gregory Breit

Chairman of the subcommittee on uranium for the National Research Council who pioneered censorship on American fission research in $1940$.

Seaborg

The scientist who discovered plutonium ($1940–41$) at Berkeley, proving that artificially produced fuel could make atomic bombs feasible.

Dunning & Urey

Scientists who solved the uranium enrichment problem using gaseous diffusion to separate $U-235$.

Scott Sagan's Three Models

The theoretical frameworks explaining nuclear acquisition: the security model, the domestic politics model, and the norms model.

McMahon Act

A US law that ended nuclear information sharing with the UK, forcing Britain to develop its own independent deterrent.

Polaris system

A US nuclear technology provided to Britain in $1962$ that served as a deterrent but rendered the UK technologically dependent.

Juche

A North Korean ideology emphasizing self-reliance and independence, which drives its nuclear program as a survival guarantee.

Songun

North Korea’s 'military-first' policy that prioritised nuclear and defence programs during resource allocation.

GEN 75 Committee

A decision-making forum on atomic energy policy established by British Prime Minister Clement Attlee.

Operation Hurricane (1952)

The mission designating Britain’s successful test of a nuclear weapon in Western Australia.

Interim Committee

An advisory committee established by Stimson in June $1945$ that recommended the use of the atomic bomb against Japan.

Operation Downfall

The planned US invasion of Kyusha and Honshu forecasted to result in up to $46,000$ American deaths in the first phase.

Potsdam Declaration

An ultimatum issued on July $26$, $1945$, by the UK, US, and China demanding the unconditional surrender of Japan.

Little Boy

The name of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima on August $6$, $1945$.

Fat Man

The name of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki on August $9$, $1945$.

Frank Aiken

The Irish Minister for External Affairs ($1951-54$, $57-69$) who was the key architect of Ireland's non-proliferation diplomacy at the UN.

Resolution 1665 (XIV)

The $1961$ 'Irish Resolution' adopted unanimously by the UN, which called for a binding international agreement to prevent nuclear transfer.

1975 Review Conference

A pivotal meeting where Ireland served as vice-president and mediator to establish the credibility of the NPT as international law.