| Chapter 1: | Two Stories |
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Chapter 1
Two Stories
The purpose of this chapter is to provide readers with historical background information. It is meant to delineate what happened and when, with minimum explanation of why those things happened. My interpretation of those happenings, and the discussion of their implications, will be presented in the later chapters.
The U.S. government's efforts in developing synthetic fuels and nuclear power both started during the Second World War. Synthetic fuels and nuclear power technologies developed largely in parallel, and the government authorities in charge remained separate until 1974. Both stories in this chapter ended in the 1980s. There was not much overlap in the two stories. Therefore, I have organized their respective stories in separate sections.
The Nuclear Power Story
Civilian nuclear power is the direct offspring of the atomic bomb. In order to understand the origin of nuclear technology and nuclear power policy, the story must start with the Manhattan Project.