Restricted Data

The History of Nuclear Secrecy in the United States

By: Alex Wellerstein

Narrated by: John McLain

The American atomic bomb was born in secrecy. From the moment scientists first conceived of its possibility to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and beyond, there were efforts to control the spread of nuclear information and the newly discovered scientific facts that made such powerful weapons possible. The totalizing scientific secrecy that the atomic bomb appeared to demand was new, unusual, and very nearly unprecedented. It was foreign to American science and American democracy - and potentially incompatible with both. From the beginning, this secrecy was controversial, and it was always contested. The atomic bomb was not merely the application of science to war, but the result of decades of investment in scientific education, infrastructure, and global collaboration. If secrecy became the norm, how would science survive?

Drawing on troves of declassified files, including records released by the government for the first time through the author's efforts, Restricted Data traces the complex evolution of the US nuclear secrecy regime from the first whisper of the atomic bomb through the mounting tensions of the Cold War and into the early 21st century. A compelling history of powerful ideas at war, it tells a story that feels distinctly American: rich, sprawling, and built on the conflict between high-minded idealism and ugly, fearful power.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2021 The University of Chicago (P)2021 Tantor

Great historical primer on classification

Worth using in a military or policies studies class. Covers many areas of the modern human experience

Deep dive into nuclear clarification

Very detailed, in-depth study of classification as regards nuclear weapons and the resulting interplay between government, industry, academia, the military, and foreign countries. This will be of interest to anyone involved in the nuclear enterprise or the security bureaucracy.

Alright. Some interesting facts

Overall, it wasn’t bad. Not as engaging as other books about nuclear history/secrecy. There are a few interesting bits I had never heard of before. It reads a little like a text book.

One criticism is the in-depth discussion and detail of stories from the 1940’s to 1960’s and 70’s, then essentially glazing over the 1990’s and 2000’s. The author mentions there were interesting developments after the Cold War, but dedicates no time to them. For example, the Wen Ho Lee spying scandal in the 1990’s is covered in a single mention as a “misunderstanding”.

Great book, just one minor complaint…

My only beef is with one aspect of the performance, and that is the pronunciation of Vannevar Bush’s first name. It’s VAH neh var, not vah NEE ver. Other than that teeth-grinding mistake, the reader did a great job.