Questions from Nuclear energy

1. Einstein-Roosevelt letter influenced deeply not only the scientific research, but also the human history. Why?

 

• Einstein explained that uranium can be turned into important source of energy. It took nineteen years after his letter to start the first nuclear reactors. Furthermore, - within the Manhattan project - it was used to create nuclear bomb. Only six years after the letter was the first use as a weapon in 1945 against Japan. As Einstein pointed out, chain reaction proved to be a very effective weapon of mass destruction.
• Civil use of nuclear energy provided a reliable and cleaner energy source than coal and oil, so many nations started to create nuclear power plants for generating electricity. On the other hand, military use of nuclear power started decades long era of cold war which almost led to the exctinction of human race during the Cuban missile crisis.

 

2. Below there are five important dates connected to Ede Teller’s life. What happened in these years in history whose impact on his life was important?

 

Immigrated into USA in 1935:

• On 16th March in 1935, Hitler announced German re-armament, in violation of the 1919  Treaty of Versailles. At this time Teller was living in Germany so this could make him to emigrate to the USA, besides the invitation of Gamow.

Left Hungary in 1926, went study to German universities:

• The Hungarian Government introduced Numerus Clausus law, which reduced the percentage of Jews at universities. Teller was Jewish, so this could influence his life.

In 1942 he was invited to take part int he Manhattan Project:

• In 1937, Leo Szilard discovered the chain reaction with Fermi. Teller also worked with physics (and he was also Hungarian), so this could be a reason that he was invited.

In 1952 he made the first succesful H-bomb test detonation:

• After the first succesful nuclear bomb detonation of the Soviet Union, President Truman announced a developement program for the hydrogen bomb. This leaded to the 1952 completion of it.

 After 1936 only in 1996 he visited Hungary again:

• The fall of communism in Hungary was in 1989, also, the Cold War ended in 1991.

 

3. The following physicists played an important role in Teller’s life. Write 2 sentences about them.

 

• Arnold Sommerfeld: A German theoretical physicist, and also the mentor of many physicicts, who won Nobel prizes later. He made a number of discoveries in quantum and nuclear physics.
• Werner Heisenberg: German theoretical physicist, who won Nobel Prize for creating quantum mechanics. He was the doctoral advisor of Edward Teller.
• Enrico Fermi: Italian phyisicist, known for his work on Chicago Pile-1 (The first nuclear reactor in the world), and earned a Nobel Prize in 1938. He worked with Edward Teller on the hydrogen bomb.
• George Gamow: Russian physicist, who recruited Teller to join him, and later they created the ”Gamow-Teller” selection rule.
• Niels Bohr: A Danish physicist, who created  the Bohr-model of the atom. He earned the Nobel Prize in 1922.

 

4. What are the most important parts of a nuclear power station?

 

• The reactor vessel, the turbines, the electric generator and the steam condenser are the most important parts of an nuclear reactor.

 

5. What were the most serious nuclear accidents in history? What were the main reasons of these?

 

• Chernobyl-disaster (April 6, 1986) Overheating, meltdown and fire caused the disaster. Disaster level: 7 (highest)
• Fukushima (March 11, 2011) Tsunami flodded the 5 reactors. The loss of electric backup caused overheating and meltdowns. Disaster level: 7
• Three Miles Island (March 28, 1979) Meltdown due to loss of coolant. Disaster level: 5

 

6. What is your opinion about when scientists discover something which is used for destruction purpose? Who is responsible for the misuse? Write an example.

 

• Certainly, destruction is not a good way to use discoveries.
• The responsible person/people is, who turn these discoveries into deadly weapons and bombs.
• Alfred Nobel made dynamit to use it in mines and construction sites. However, dynamits were later used in battles and wars, although Nobel did not want this.

 

7. What is your opinion about Manhattan project? Was it necessary?

 

• I think America needed the nuclear bomb at that time to show his power to the enemies. BUT:

            it was not necessary to create it.

• They could not see what we did, the Cold War, which lasted for over 40 years, the nuclear bombs of Iran against Israel and the world... All in all, I think it was not necessary to create the nuclear bomb within the Manhattan Project.

 

8. This quotation from Leó Szilárd: „Gyerekkoromban két dolog érdekelt, a fizika és a politika, de soha nem hittem, hogy valaha kapcsolatba kerülnek egymással.” What do you think? does politics and physics have connection at all?

 

• We just have to look at Teller's or Leó’s life. They emigrated to the USA before World War II, and they took part in a physical discovey, the nuclear bomb, which was later used to stop the attacks of Japan and changed the whole world. It was a physical discovery, and was used in politics. So my answer: Yes, physics and politics may have connection in a way.

 

9. Electromagnetic radiation is also used in health sector. How and what is it used for?

 

• Gamma ray is used to kill cancer and sterilize medical equipment. It comes from radioactive materials, so it cannot be controlled. X-ray is used to see through materials, like human body, packages at airports and trucks at country borders. X-rays are manufactured by a machine. When fast moving electrons emitted by a cathode hits the anode, some transfer to heat, and the other transfer to X-rays. When these X-rays go through the object, they go through soft materials, but they don't go through bones or other harder materials.

 

10. What kind of paradigm shift happened int he XX. century?

 

• The development of quantum mechanics, which replaced classical mechanics at microscopic scales, and also the transition between the worldview of Newtonian physics and the Einsteinian relativistic worldview.