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Budget[edit]

The funding for Project Sherwood began with the closure of another program named Project Lincoln at the Hood Laboratory.[1] As the number of people working on the projects grew, so did the budget. The original budget from the shut down of Project Lincoln was $1 million.[2] From 1953 and on, the budget rose. The breakdown of the year budget from 1951 to 1957 can be seen in the table below.

Year of Project Budget
1951-1953 $1 million[3]
1954 $1.7 million[4]
1955 $4.7 million[5]
1956 $6.7 million[6]
1957 $10.7 million[7]

Declassification of Project Sherwood[edit]

The declassification of the program was a large topic of discussion between scientists at all of the laboratories involved with the project and at the Sherwood conferences. The reasoning for an initial high classification status was that if the research into controlled fusion were to be successful then it would be a significant advantage in regards to military aspects.[8] However, it came to the point that the research needed to be industrialized. Some of this work could be conducted without access to the classified information; however, there were some instances where the classified information of the program was a necessity for those people working on projects such as the large-scale stellarator, the ultra-high vacua, and the problem of energy storage.[9] In these instances, there was a contract with the Commission that the information that was being used would only be shared with the personnel that was directly working on the project. It soon became apparent that industrial companies were expected to become highly invested in the area of fission and because of this it began clear that these companies should have full access to the research information obtained by Project Sherwood. In June of 1956, permits for the research information from Project Sherwood became available through the Commission for companies that were qualified.[10] However, between 1955 and 1958, information became more and more available to the public with its gradual declassification beginning with the sharing of information with the United Kingdom. Huge supporters of declassification of the program included the director of the Divison of Research, Thomas Johnson, and a member of his staff, Amasa Bishop. Some of their reasoning for wanting declassification was that the secrecy of the project could negatively impact their ability to enlist and employ experienced personnel to the program.[11] The also argued that it would change the way their conferences could be held. The scientists working on the project would be able to freely discuss their findings with others in the scientific community rather than only the scientists working on the same project.[12] By May of 1958, basic information about the various projects within Project Sherwood including the stellarator, magnetic mirrors, and molecular ion beams had been released to the public.[13]

Development of Other Programs in Controlled Fusion[edit]

Oak Ridge National Laboratory[edit]

In the early 1950s, Oak Ridge National Laboratory was composed of a small group of scientists that were mostly experienced with research in ion-source technology. However, research from Project Sherwood was a growing area of interest, and the researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory wanted to participate in the discovery of controlled fusion. They studied areas of controlled fusion such as the rate of plasma diffusion in a magnetic field and the charge-exchange process. However, their work with ion-source was still a large part of their research.[14]

University of California[edit]

Although there was already a main project (magnetic mirror) at the University of California, a scientist named W. R. Baker began his research into the pinch effect at UCRL, Berkeley in 1952. Two years later, S. Colgate began research on shock-heating at UCRL, Livermore.[15]

Tufts College, Medford[edit]

There was another small group of scientists at Tufts College in Medford, Massachusetts that had become involved in the research of the pinch effect. Although their work was not an official part of the Atomic Energy Commission, some of their personnel did attended the Sherwood conferences.[16]

New York University[edit]

In 1954, there was a program started at New York University called the Division of Research. It was a small program that included personnel from the Institute of Mathematical Sciences at New York University.[17]

Other Programs (1955-1958)[edit]

  1. ^ Clery, Daniel (2014). A Piece of the Sun: The Quest for Fusion Energy. The Overlook Press. ISBN 978-1468308891.
  2. ^ Clery, Daniel (2014). A Piece of the Sun: The Quest for Fusion Energy. The Overlook Press. ISBN 978-1468308891.
  3. ^ Clery, Daniel (2014). A Piece of the Sun: The Quest for Fusion Energy. The Overlook Press. ISBN 978-1468308891.
  4. ^ Clery, Daniel (2014). A Piece of the Sun: The Quest for Fusion Energy. The Overlook Press. ISBN 978-1468308891.
  5. ^ Clery, Daniel (2014). A Piece of the Sun: The Quest for Fusion Energy. The Overlook Press. ISBN 978-1468308891.
  6. ^ Clery, Daniel (2014). A Piece of the Sun: The Quest for Fusion Energy. The Overlook Press. ISBN 978-1468308891.
  7. ^ Clery, Daniel (2014). A Piece of the Sun: The Quest for Fusion Energy. The Overlook Press. ISBN 978-1468308891.
  8. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 156. ISBN 9781258905354.
  9. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 154. ISBN 9781258905354.
  10. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 155. ISBN 9781258905354.
  11. ^ Bromberg, Joan Lisa (1985). Fusion: Science, Politics, and and Invention of a New Energy Source. The MIT Press. p. 96. ISBN 9780262521062.
  12. ^ Bromberg, Joan Lisa (1985). Fusion: Science, Politics, and and Invention of a New Energy Source. The MIT Press. p. 96. ISBN 9780262521062.
  13. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 160. ISBN 9781258905354.
  14. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 65. ISBN 9780201005752.
  15. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 68. ISBN 9780201005752.
  16. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 70-72. ISBN 9780201005752.
  17. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 72. ISBN 9780201005752.
  18. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 152. ISBN 9780201005752.
  19. ^ Bromberg, Joan Lisa (1985). Fusion: Science, Politics, and and Invention of a New Energy Source. The MIT Press. p. 97. ISBN 9780262521062.
  20. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 152. ISBN 9780201005752.
  21. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 152. ISBN 9780201005752.
  22. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 152. ISBN 9780201005752.
  23. ^ Bishop, Amasa (1958). Project Sherwood; the U.S. Program in Controlled Fusion. Addison-Wesley. p. 152. ISBN 9780201005752.