Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1958-02-23
BY PHIL YEAGER and
JOHN STARK

OF all the New Forces which
lately have come over civilizations
horizon, none is more beguiling
to ambitious man than nuclear
power. The reverberations Of the
first atom bomb over Hiroshima
had barely died away before lay
men raptly attended as the scien-.
fists extolled the good" posi-
bilities of atomic energy. If only
man could avoid destroying him.
self. luxurious, want-free world
was within reach.
Generally, the great expecta-
tions were warranted; nuclear
power does indeed have POSSIBLE
ties almost beyond imagination.
But it seems apparent now that
they have been distorted In three
aspects:
. The ease with which science
can provide us with an advanced
nuclear civilization.
. The amount of time required to
do the job.
Q The problems and dangers that
widespread use of nuclear energy
will bring.
In each of these categories we
tend to- oversimplify and UNDER
estimate.
The Nucleor Dream
1t is impossible not to dream
Of the day when we will have I'M
limited sources of cheap. clean
power, when the energy of the
sun is reproduced in miniature
to propel earthmen among the
planets, when the mysteries Of the
atom are harnessed to help wipe
out suffering and disease.
Arrows of thought which point
in these directions can be detected
in competent. conservative reports
on American progress in the nu-
clear field, as we'll as in concrete
industrial developments.
Marked advances, for example.
in chemistry, metallurgy, agricul-
ture, food publication. biology,
medicine, photosynthetics, indus
trial isotopes, ETC., are occurring
with increasing rapidity. Some Of
them are truly important dis
coveries. Similarly. and with more
publicity, the use of nuclear energy
to provide heat, light and power
from atomic fission plants is
reality in America. Industrially,
atom power is proceeding at pos
sibly an even more rapid clip in
places like England, Japan and
Western Europe where fossil fuels
are much less plentiful.
The atomic submarine has DEM
onStrated what vast propulsive
power lies in nuclear energy. Nu-
clear power is certain to advance
in time to aircraft and perhaps
to land carriers.
The non military use of nuclear
energy to power rocket engines
would have much interest for civil
communications - not only for
space travel, but for air travel,
cargo hauling. mail delivery. and
so on.
The Minus Side
What about the minus side of
nuclear energy?
There are two major categories:
Mass destruction from nuclear
weapons and the hazards Of radio
activity.
Controlling nuclear weapons is
a crucial problem. obviously. But
the danger from their actual use
is one which can be met only
through international negotiation.
1t is a political matter which,
sooner or later will have to be
settled by the worlds statesmen.
Radioactivity, however, is a
"clear and present" domestic dan
ger and one that is here to stay.
Moreover, it is shaping up as a
threat of far greater proportions
than most of us have previously
thought.
Dr.. Shields Warren, director of
the Cancer Research Institute of
New England and chairman of a
United Nations group studying
the genetic effects of radioactivity,
now warns: If we are to make
use of atomic energy for peaceful
purposes. we must learn how to
control such hazards as may prove
to be associated with (radiation) >"
DR.. Bentley Glass. professor of
biology at Johns Hopkins Uni
versity. recently reported to the
American Association for the
Advancement of Science: 1.-THE
threat to mankind of exposure to