Ralph Lapp
Encyclopedia
Ralph Eugene Lapp was an American
physicist
who participated in the Manhattan Project
.
He was born in Buffalo, New York
, and attended the University of Chicago
. After completing his graduate studies at the University he joined the Manhattan Project
; and became the assistant Director of the Metallurgical Laboratory. He then accepted a position with the War department General Staff as a scientific advisor on atomic energy. When the research and development board was formed, Doctor Lapp became executive director of its committee on atomic energy. After this he acted as Head of the Nuclear Physics branch of the Office of Naval Research. He wrote Nuclear Radiation Biology, A Nuclear Reference Manual, Must We Hide ?, and assisted Doctor H.L. in writing Nuclear Radiation Physics. He became an activist later in life and wrote a book, Victims Of The Super Bomb
(1957).
In his book The New Priesthood: The Scientific Elite and The Uses of Power, Lapp describes the increase in funding for science and the growing influence of scientists in American politics after the invention of the atomic bomb.
Mr. Lapp was interviewed by Mike Wallace in 1957.
In 1971, he coined the expression "China Syndrome
."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
who participated in the Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
.
He was born in Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, and attended the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. After completing his graduate studies at the University he joined the Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
; and became the assistant Director of the Metallurgical Laboratory. He then accepted a position with the War department General Staff as a scientific advisor on atomic energy. When the research and development board was formed, Doctor Lapp became executive director of its committee on atomic energy. After this he acted as Head of the Nuclear Physics branch of the Office of Naval Research. He wrote Nuclear Radiation Biology, A Nuclear Reference Manual, Must We Hide ?, and assisted Doctor H.L. in writing Nuclear Radiation Physics. He became an activist later in life and wrote a book, Victims Of The Super Bomb
(1957).
In his book The New Priesthood: The Scientific Elite and The Uses of Power, Lapp describes the increase in funding for science and the growing influence of scientists in American politics after the invention of the atomic bomb.
Mr. Lapp was interviewed by Mike Wallace in 1957.
In 1971, he coined the expression "China Syndrome
China Syndrome
The term China syndrome describes a nuclear reactor operations accident characterized by the severe meltdown of the core components of the reactor, which then burn through the containment vessel and the housing building, then notionally through the crust and body of the Earth until reaching...
."
Works
- Atoms And People (1956)
- Radiation: What It Is And How It Affects You (1957)
- The voyage of the Lucky Dragon (1958); Harper, New York
- Matter (1963); Series: Time-Life Science Library
- The New Priesthood: The Scientific Elite and The Uses of Power (1965)
- Arms Beyond Doubt: The Tyranny Of Weapons Technology (1970)
- My Life With Radiation: Hiroshima Plus Fifty Years (1995)