The Development of Nuclear Power for 

 Peaceful Purposes' 



By Henry D. Smyth 



Princeton University 

 Formerly Member^ United States Atomic Energy Commission 



The structure of modern industrial society depends on plentiful 

 supplies of energy. There is never enough. We are always seeking 

 new sources. Yet we have not tapped the most generous sources of 

 energy that nature has supplied to us — the winds, the tides, the rays 

 of the sun. We have not yet learned how to harness these great nat- 

 ural forces. 



Fifteen years ago a new natural force was discovered, the fission 

 of uranium. Within the first 2 months of 1939 the idea of uranium 

 fission was suggested, communicated, proved experimentally, and pub- 

 lished. Tlie speed and importance of this discovery constitute one 

 of the most spectacular events in the history of science. It involved 

 men of many nations, free communication, high imagination, and 

 precise experiment. 



In a world at war, the potential use of nuclear fission in bombs 

 meant that vast sums of money were soon available for its exploita- 

 tion. In 1945, only 6 years later, an atomic bomb marked the end of 

 the second World War. 



We are now engaged in an effort to harness this same atomic energy 

 for peaceful purposes. It is a great effort and indeed should be so, 

 for success in it may materially change the lives and conditions of 

 men. The accident of history has placed the major responsibility 

 for this effort on the Government of the United States. As its agent, 

 the Atomic Energy Commission has brought together an array of 

 scientific and engineering talent never before equaled. Private in- 

 dustry already is carrying a major share of our enterprise imder 



^Talk delivered at the national meeting of the American Institute of Chemical 

 Engineers, March 9, 1954. Reprinted by permission from Electrical Engineering, 

 vol. 73, No. 6, June 1954. 



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