Part A – Plan of Investigation This investigation focuses on the use and necessity of the atomic bomb in World War II. To what extent did the atomic bomb dropped by the United States during World War II save lives? This will be investigated using websites, books, military accounts, and newspaper articles. Military calculations of what potentially could have happened had the United States invaded Japan instead of dropping the bomb will be researched. Also, information from the Manhattan Project, reinterpretations of the event, and military strategies of several countries will be used. The physical effects of the bomb on the victims will also be considered. Alternate opinions of why the bomb was dropped will be discussed. Part B – Summary of Evidence Upon entering World War II as a result of Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States faced the burden of fighting two dangerous military powers: Germany and Japan. Germany was developing new, secret weapons that could very likely be a potential threat to the United States. It had been reported that German scientists were experimenting with splitting the atom, which would release an enormous amount of energy.1 Whoever was successful with this tactic had the power to control the world. After receiving this information, President Harry Truman went into shock. The United States began atomic research shortly after with the help of physicists Leo Szilard and Albert Einstein.2 This effort was code-named the Manhattan Project, which took place in Los Alamos, New Mexico. The project involved more than half a million people working to design and predict the results of an atomic bomb. After spending two billion dollars, a test called Trinity was cond... ... middle of paper ... ...domino effect starting with the surrender of the Japanese, bringing World War II and all of its casualties to an end. Works Cited 1. Blohm, Craig E. "Manhattan Project." Cobblestone May-June 2010: 36+. General Reference Center. Web. 4 Jan. 2011. 2. Clancey, Patrick. "The Effects of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki." http://www.ibiblio.org. Patrick Clancey HyperWar Foundation, 1946. Web. 3 Jan. 2011. 3. Dannen, Gene. "Atomic Bomb: Decision." http://www.dannen.com. N.p., 9 Aug. 2003. Web. 1 Jan. 2011 4. Davis, James Martin. "How the Atomic Bomb Saved 4,000,000 Lives." http://www.freerepublic.com. N.p., 25 Sept. 2006. Web. 4 Jan. 2011. 5. Sullivan, Edward T. The Ultimate Weapon. New York: Holiday House, 2007. Print. 6. Sullivan, Edward T. "Edward T. Sullivan-Author." http://www.sully-writer.com Web. 06 Dec. 2011.
The U.S. decided to develop the atomic bomb based on the fear they had for the safety of the nation. In August 1939 nuclear physicists sent manuscripts to Albert Einstein in fear the Germany might use the new knowledge of fission on the uranium nucleus as way to construct weapons. In response, on August 2, 1939, Einstein sent a letter to President Roosevelt concerning the pressing matter to use uranium to create such weapons before Germany (Doc A-1). To support the development of the atomic bomb, President Roosevelt approved the production of the bomb following the receipt that the bomb is feasible on January 19, 1942. From this day to December of 1942, many laboratories and ...
The war was coming to a victorious conclusion for the Allies. Germany had fallen, and it was only a matter of time until Japan would fall as well. Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson was at the forefront of the American war effort, and saw atomic weaponry as a way out of the most monumental war ever. As discussed in Cabell Phillips’ book, The Truman Presidency: The History of a Triumphant Succession, Stimson was once quoted as saying that the atomic bomb has “more effect on human affairs than the theory of Copernicus and the Law of Gravity” (55). Stimson, a defendant of dropping the bomb on Japan, felt that the world would never be the same. If the world would change after using atomic weapons, could it possibly have changed for the better? One would think not. However, that person might be weary of the biased opinion of White House personnel. He or she should care more for the in depth analytical studies done by experts who know best as to why America should or should not have dropped the atomic bomb. As more and more evidence has been presented to researchers, expert opinion on whether or not the United States should have dropped the two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki has also changed. More and more researchers seem to feel that the atomic bomb should never have been used (Alperovitz 16). Despite several officials’ claims to enormous death estimations, an invasion of Japan would have cost fewer total lives. In addition, post atomic bomb repercussions that occurred, such as the Arms Race, were far too great a price to pay for the two atomic drops. However, possibly the most compelling argument is that Japan would have surrendered with or without the United States using the atomic bomb. In defiance of top...
... the Japanese were unpredictable. If Harry Truman had not dropped the bombs over Japan it would have only brought on further casualties.
In 1945, the United States was facing severe causalities in the war in the Pacific. Over 12,000 soldiers had already lost their lives, including 7,000 Army and Marine soldiers and 5,000 sailors (32). The United States was eager to end the war against Japan, and to prevent more American causalities (92). An invasion of Japan could result in hundreds of thousands killed, wounded and missing soldiers, and there was still no clear path to an unconditional surrender. President Truman sought advice from his cabinet members over how to approach the war in the Pacific. Although there were alternatives to the use of atomic weapons, the evidence, or lack thereof, shows that the bombs were created for the purpose of use in the war against Japan. Both the political members, such as Henry L. Stimson and James F. Byrnes, and military advisors George C. Marshall and George F. Kennan showed little objection to completely wiping out these Japanese cities with atomic weapons (92-97). The alternatives to this tactic included invading Japanese c...
Although WW II ended over 50 years ago there is still much discussion as to the events which ended the War in the Pacific. The primary event which historians attribute to this end are the use of atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Although the bombing of these cities did force the Japanese to surrender, many people today ask “Was the use of the atomic bomb necessary to end the war?” and more importantly “Why was the decision to use the bomb made?” Ronald Takaki examines these questions in his book Hiroshima.
The United States of America’s use of the atomic bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has spurred much debate concerning the necessity, effectiveness, and morality of the decision since August 1945. After assessing a range of arguments about the importance of the atomic bomb in the termination of the Second World War, it can be concluded that the use of the atomic bomb served as the predominant factor in the end of the Second World War, as its use lowered the morale, industrial resources, and military strength of Japan. The Allied decision to use the atomic bomb not only caused irreparable physical damage on two major Japanese cities, but its use also minimized the Japanese will to continue fighting. These two factors along
One of the most argued topics today, the end of World War II and the dropping of the atomic bombs still rings in the American ear. Recent studies by historians have argued that point that the United States really did not make the right choice when they chose to drop the atomic bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Also with the release of once classified documents, we can see that the United States ...
America’s development of this secret atomic bomb began back in 1939 when President Roosevelt was still alive. This project was so secretive that Roosevelt did not even want his Vice President Harry S. Truman to know a thing about it. Truman could not believe it, until he read the note from Secretary Stimson. That night he wrote a letter in his diary about the U.S. perfecting an explosive great enough to destroy the world. Tr...
During World War II, a new, powerful, and top-secret weapon of mass destruction was necessary in order to defeat Hitler and Germany. This weapon was the Atomic Bomb, these bombs were controversial due to it 's sheer power to decimate an entire city, and kill possibly millions after it was tested. It 's name was Trinity in 1945. Let us rewind back three years when Nazi Germany was a strong force to be dealt with. There were fears and discussions about Nazi Germany was possibly developing and building a nuclear weapon during WWII. This fearfulness triggered President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to assemble a crew of top-secret scientist which even included the assistance of Albert Einstein.
Atomic Bomb in World War 2 During World War II the United States government launched a $2 billion project. This project, known as the Manhattan Project, was an effort to produce an atomic bomb. This project was taken on by a group atomic scientists from all over the world.
As World War 2, came to a close, The United States unleashed a secret atomic weapon upon the enemy nation of Japan that was quickly recognized as the most powerful wartime weapon in human history. They completely destroyed the entire Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and essentially vaporized countless innocent Japanese lives. Some historians believe that it was a foolish, brutal decision to use the atomic bomb on a weakened Japan, and that the civilians of the country did not deserve that kind of mass-annihilation. On the opposite side, other historians assert that dropping the bomb saved countless American and Japanese lives by ending the war faster than a regular invasion would have. What is undisputed is that this sad event dramatically changed the course of human history.
...the Japanese people. Harry Truman's decision to drop the atomic bomb changed the way Americans thought about war because of the traumatic after effects.
In 1941, The United States began an atomic bomb program called the “Manhattan Project.” The main objective of the “Manhattan Project” was to research and build an atomic bomb before Germany could create and use one against the allied forces during World War II. German scientists had started a similar research program four years before the United States began so the scientists of the “Manhattan Project” felt a sense of urgency throughout their work (Wood “Men … Project”).
In fear that Nazi Germany was developing an atomic bomb, on December 6 1941, scientists, engineers and the army raced to build the first man-made atomic bomb. These combined efforts provide the United States with wartime military advantage was dubbed ‘The Manhattan Project’. However, when by late 1944, concrete intelligence confirmed that Germany’s work on atomic weaponry had basically stalled in 1942, many scientists were given cause to pause and reassess their commitment to the project. Joseph Rotblat, for instance, quit the project maintaining that, ‘the fact that the German effort was stillborn undermined the rationale for continuing’. Indeed, he was the exception. Nevertheless, the scientists’ apprehensions reached a high plateau when Germany surrendered in May 1945. These events, among others, suggested that the bomb would be used, if at all, against Japan (a reversal, in a way, of the racism and genocide issues within Germany). Many scientists, thus, began to debate among themselves the moral and ethical implications of using an atomic bomb in the war and the fate of humanity in the imminent atomic age. In doing so, the scientists with a stronger sense of responsibility, resolved that, as they had created the bomb, they possessed both the legitimacy and intellect to formulate proposals regarding its use. On their political mission, the scientists fastened...
2 Manhattan Project – Name given to the development and research of the atomic bomb in the U.S.