Detachment in Heart of Darkness
In the book Heart of Darkness, Marlowe only allows himself to
form only one bond. Marlowe allows himself to form a small "safe"
attachment to Kurtz because Kurtz is already very attached. He does not
form any other bonds. In fact, he uses his racism to eliminate the
possibility of having feelings for about ninety nine percent of the African
population. Marlowe not only looks at the African people as being to
different from him to be normal, but he goes so far as to describe
Africa as being another world, a world containing savages. He would not
let himself become attached to this land, or it's inhabitants. Anytime
he feels himself having a relationship with anyone, he purposely stops
himself from feeling, fearing that opening himself up may result in
rejection and/or heartbreak.
He claimed that he felt a connection with Kurtz this, I believe,
is because he knew that this was "safe." This was "safe" because he
knew that Kurtz would die before any real attachment could be made. He
also knew that Kurtz would not have the same feeling for him as he had
for Kurtz. This is because Kurtz already had two girlfriends, and a
best friend (the Russian). This was something that Marlowe could deal
with because Kurtz was already deeply involved so it held little risk
for intense attachment. This is also shown when the helmsman,
man who steers the ship, gets killed. Marlowe says that he liked that
man because he was reliable, and not mush else. He did not even shed a tear for a man that he worked everyday with for the last
six months. He simply threw him overboard, thinking about it for only a
few minutes and then, he walked away. The Cannibals on the ship were
starving. They had almost no food with them, and were not given the
opportunity to buy food. The helmsman body could have been enough food
for all of them for awhile. Marlowe, acting in character, did not care
about this. He said that it may start a bad chain of events. Because
of this all of the Cannibals went hungry for the rest of the trip.
Going along with his inability to have healthy relationships
with people and his inability to care, is his racism. This racism acts
as a good buffer against attachment.
Seventy-one years after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, nuclear power is rarely recognized as a solution to the energy crisis. Instead, it is associated with the most violent pits of Hell: warfare. The demands of warfare exhaust the scientific community and deplete its resources, as well as decimating the human population.
According to Merriam-Webster, nuclear fission is defined as “the splitting of an atomic nucleus resulting in the release of large amounts of energy” (Nuclear Fission). In the book Remembering the Manhattan Project: Perspectives on the Making of the Atomic Bomb and Its Legacy, Richard Rhodes, an American journalist and historian, states that fission was essentially discovered by accident. On December 21, 1938, German physicists, Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassman, were performing an experiment in which they bombarded uranium atoms with neutrons (Rhodes 17). They saw that this procedure created mutated atoms that had strange characteristics. Hahn and Strassman found that the neutrons split the nuclei of the uranium in half producing radioactive barium and krypton (Rhodes 18). Rhodes explains that the physicists observed that the reaction was extremely exothermic, producing about ten times the energy needed for the fission to occur. After publishing their findings, physicists all over the world recreated the experiment. After conducting his own fission experiment, Enrico Fermi, an Italian physicist at Colombia University, said, “A little bomb like that and it would all disappear” (qtd. Rhodes 19). Many of the world’s physicists came to the same conclusion; this reaction could be used to develop an atomic weapon. According to Rhodes, this discovery made the development of atomic weaponry seem essential to many countries because the only way to defend themselves against atomic weapons was to have similar weapons of their own.
Nuclear transmutations had began in 1919 with an experiment by Earnest Rutherford. He demonstrated that nitrogen, when bombarded with alpha particles, can be turned into oxygen. During the 1920’s experiments continued, but collecting radioactive sources with a high enough intensity became hard. In 1931 the invention of the cyclotron and the Van de Graaff accelerator made a variety of other particles available, and strengthened nuclear studies. In 1934 Frederick Joliot discovered artificial radioactivity. The development of nuclear fission, the splitting of an elements heavy nucleus, like a uranium atom to form two lighter "fission fragments" as well as less massive particles as the neutrons, really began with the research of Enrico Fermi and his associates at the University of Rome, in Italy.
During last 50 years of development, the nuclear bomb, as the ultimate weapon became the peacekeeping force on the earth. The nuclear bomb was developed in Manhattan project during the WW II and was successfully tested in the New Mexico on July 16 1945. At this point started the change of nuclear weapon from ultimate weapon to political weapon. USA decided to use the atomic bomb to defeat Japan in order to save around 500.000 lives of American soldiers that were needed to end the war and in the summer 1945 the USA dropped two bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The nuclear weapon raised the confidence of USA but president Truman did not ordered its mass production because at that time he saw no explicit political function for the bomb. USA even tried to internationalize control of the bomb under the UNITED NATIONS but the Soviets were reluctant to support American plan for two reasons. To stop soviet nuclear program before developing the first soviet bomb would give Americans permanent lead in nuclear weapons technology. Soviets believed that instruments of force always have political capabilities. For the Kremlin weapons were political tools. This led Americans to the same conclusion. The beginning of Cold War created several political functions of nuclear weapons: nuclear deterrence, alliance building, and international prestige.
To detonate one of these bombs, enough mass of plutonium or uranium must be provided to reach what is known as "critical mass." Critical mass is the mass at which the nuclear reactions going on inside the material can make up for the neutrons that are leaving the material through its outside surface. These materials are usually separated within the bomb so that critical mass cannot be reached until the bomb is ready to explode. Once the chemical reactions within the bomb begin, the neutrons released by each reaction hit other atoms and create more fission reactions until all the material is scattered, or completely exhausted. This process releases enormous amounts of energy in the form of extreme heat and a massive shock wave. These nuclear explosions, in addition to their pressure waves, high winds, and flash burns, produce deadly radiation that contaminates soil and water, and destroyed living matter.
There are at least 17,300 nuclear weapons in existence, with North Korea at the least with less than 10, the US is in second place with 7,700 nuclear weapons and Russia has the most with 8,500, enough to wipe out the world’s population many times over and 2,500 (7%) of these weapons are ready to fire at a moment’s notice. Nuclear weapons today are much more powerful than ever before, but what are the real effects of these explosive killing machines? Nuclear weapons are Dangerous to the world’s population and should be eliminated from their use in global warfare. These weapons not only kill thousands on the initial explosion, but they also leave hazardous materials behind, killing just as many people from radiation poisoning for miles from the blast point. Though it would be impossible to completely remove these weapons, we should restrict their use in warfare and make sure no nation starts a nuclear war. Using just one weapon has never been enough and this could not just lead to a global war between countries but, a war between the most powerful countries in the world. I believe that weapons as powerful as these should be restricted from use, but should still be owned by countries.
Nuclear weapon is a new kind of technology that gives us an unprecedented power over nature and humanity. The technological decisions regarding nuclear weapons will have a huge impact upon all nations around the world and even future generations. “Of all the unprecedented powers in our hands, none is potentially more destructive than nuclear weapons. For forty years we lived with the threat of a nuclear holocaust that could wipe out a large part of humanity and other forms of life” (Barbour, 200). This technology increases the power of one nation, or a small group of nations, over other nations and nature. Corruption, a shadow of power, lurks around the corner where power is present. With the advancement of nuclear weapons technology, the chances of a “master race” wanting to dominate the world is not far fetch. The possibility of a second Adolph Hitler is high, and this time the existence of humanity is at risk. We need to approach this area of technology with caution and with modesty because these devices have incredible destructive power. As the technology advances and the devices become more powerful, we need to become more careful to use them wisely or the extinction of the human race and other life forms are at stake.
...is understandable the attraction that nuclear weapons for those seeking power for manipulation or blackmail. Terrorists may either seize an existing weapon which is extremely difficult to do. Or they could set up a facility to make one. Obtaining nuclear weapons by individuals or groups is doubtful because the materials are difficult to gain and to handle. Also military weapons and nuclear power plants and facilities are guarded heavily. It might not be necessary for terrorists to obtain a weapon. Instead, they could create immense fear and panic if they obtained the information on how to create these weapons. Between ten countries there are an estimated 17,134 nuclear warheads armed and ready to be launched on the whim of these countries. The United States alone has an estimated 7,650 warheads each with the strength of twenty times that of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The discovery of fission occurred during a time of great turmoil. Two German physicists then later verified by two Jewish refugee physicists discovered it. Italian Physicists Enrico Fermi later discovered the unique quality of fission that was induced by neutrons but also produced neutrons. This created the idea of a self-sustaining chain reaction, and the large amount of energy found within a nucleus was now accessible at a large scale (Nuclear weapons section, para 1).
Throughout half the century of the 19’s hundreds a period of new advancements in the creations of a bomb had arisen. On August 8th, 1939 President Roosevelt received a letter from Albert Einstein which ended up being the fundamental support in the creation of the Atomic Bomb. There are two types of atomic bombs fusion and fission, the first atomic bomb was created in 1939 by the Manhattan Project, three weeks later after its first test, it was used in an actual war. It’s capable of wiping out a whole entire city and killing instantly anyone in its way. Now we have better more precise bomb know as hydrogen bombs, these bomb use the energy released when the nuclei of a hydrogen come together or fuse, unlike a fission bomb which gets its energy from when the nuclei of a heavy element such as plutonium or uranium splitting apart creating a chain reaction leading to a large explosion.
The Cold War was a time of great tension all over the world. From 1945 to 1989, the United States was the leader and nuclear power and was competing with the Soviet Union to create huge stockpiles of nuclear weapons. However, even though the Cold War ended, nuclear weapons are still a threat. Countries around the world strive to create nuclear power, and they do not promise to use it for peaceful purposes. Some examples of the struggles caused by nuclear weapons include the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and Iran’s recent nuclear weapon program. Surely, nuclear weapons have created conflict all over the world since the Cold War era.
A group of scientists from around the world named the Manhattan Project was created by the United States. The projects one goal was to invent the first nuclear weapon, and they successfully tested the first nuclear weapon in 1945. A nuclear weapon is a device that derives its energy from nuclear reactions. These reactions are the breaking and joining of atom bonds which creates tremendous amount of radiation. Nuclear bombs contain uranium atoms, and when detonated they become more powerful than any other weapon ever made.
The world and its people have been witnessing very painful misfortunes that have gripped the biosphere and its inhabitants for several years. Nuclear weapons are those armaments which have convoyed humans, since the Second World War until the days we live, in peace and in secure world. Nuclear weapons pose a threat to the world and its beings, which have a tremendous role in the improvement and fruition of life on earth. The history of nuclear weapons proliferations begins with the stressed political situation between the United States of America and socialist Russia, recognized in the world literature as the Cold War. This anxious political situation among United States, Russia and their allies, made the world to introduce for the first time with the destructive weapons that man has ever encountered. As Jim McCluskey argues that there are not any weapons that can homicide millions of people for a short period of time apart from nuclear weapons (McCluskey 1). Indeed, the proliferation and the usage of nuclear weapons have changed the world political leadership's, in order to get the world safer for people and the environment in which they live and function. McCluskey goes on to allege that the peace and security in the world would not prevail if nuclear weapons are existing (McCluskey 2). However, such individuals should be set to throwaway the usage of nuclear weapons, in order that life in this planet will continue even after our death, enabling other generations to live in a safety world. Several individuals and critics claim that the proliferation of nuclear weapons threatens the life of human society, and in meanwhile violating the human rights to live in a safe and peaceful world. Nuclear weapons are proficient of doing mass...
First off being the cost and maintenance of the weapons. These weapons cost tons to build and maintain, and can cause a dent in a nation 's treasury department (OccupyTheory). Studies show the United States will spend at least $179 billion over the nine fiscal years of 2010 to 2018 on its nuclear arsenal, averaging $20 billion per year, with costs increasing from $16 billion to $25 billion per year over that time period (NTI). So once a nation can fund the nuclear weapons, they have to look past their moral ethical beliefs to actually use the weapon. Serious questions abrupt when a nation plans on developing these weapons due to the power of the weapon. Due to the increasing development of nuclear weapons in the 1980s the United States and Russia set up a meeting in October 1986 where US President Ronald Reagan and Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev met in Iceland to discuss plans of abolishing nuclear weapons (NWT). On December 8, 1987, the US and Russia sign the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty to eliminate all land-based missiles that reach distances of 300-3400 miles (NWT). Another negative result of nuclear weapons are the damage it can create, environmentally and physically. Not even one month after the United States first tested their nuclear weapons in New Mexico, they put their weapons to use during World War II. A time which will forever be remembered in
Scientists from earlier times helped influence the discoveries that lead to the development of atomic energy. In the late 1800’s, Dalton created the Atomic Theory which explains atoms, elements and compounds (Henderson 1). This was important to the study of and understanding of atoms to future scientists. The Atomic Theory was a list of scientific laws regarding atoms and their potential abilities. Roentagen, used Dalton’s findings and discovered x-rays which could pass through solid objects (Henderson 1). Although he did not discover radiation from the x-rays, he did help lay the foundations for electromagnetic waves. Shortly after Roentagen’s findings, J.J. Thompson discovered the electron which was responsible for defining the atom’s characteristics (Henderson 2). The electron helped scientists uncover why an atom responds to reactions the way it does and how it received its “personality”. Dalton’s, Roentagen’s and Thompson’s findings helped guide other scientists to discovering the uses of atomic energy and reactions. Such applications were discovered in the early 1900’s by using Einstein’s equation, which stated that if a chain reaction occurred, cheap, reliable energy could b...