Stanford and Nuclear Weapons

It is fortunate that many people from across the globe have finally begun to confront the dangers that may threaten human survival.  One such environmental threat, climate change, has perhaps received the most attention.  While poisoning the earth may result in our nuanced and slow demise, there is another potential catastrophe that holds the promise of wiping out human life almost instantaneously — namely, nuclear war.  As long as countries continue to stockpile large amounts nuclear arms, the possibility of a terminal nuclear war can not be dismissed.

Indeed, we did come very close to nuclear obliteration during the Cuban missile crisis.  In October 1962 a Soviet submarine armed with nuclear torpedoes came under attack by US destroyers.  An order came down from the Soviet chain of command to deploy the nuclear weapons in response, but an officer named Vasili Arkhipov refused.  The chilling truth is that humanity came one word away from a nuclear holocaust.

Although the Cold War has passed, many other triggers for nuclear confrontation remain.  The continual tension between India and Pakistan is but one example.  Proliferation of nuclear weaponry continues unabated, with North Korea recently joining the nuclear club and, presumably, Iran not far behind.  This trend will continue as long as states feel that a powerful deterrent is the only true way to prevent other countries from attacking.

US policy has not been particularly helpful on this front, either.  President Obama recently proposed a huge budget increase for nuclear weapons and his arms sales in Asia have caused China to refuse non-proliferation talks.  With regard to Iran, one can hardly blame the country for racing to pursue a deterrent in light of American saber rattling which has been going on for quite some time.

In sum, the outbreak of nuclear war is still a very real threat and our survival depends on it not happening.

Fortunately, there is hope.  Professor Martin Hellman, probably best known as a co-inventor of Public Key Cryptography, recently wrote the article Defusing the Nuclear Threat: A Catalytic Role for Stanford Students? in which he laid out a plan to bring some sanity the the debate over nuclear weapons with the help of Stanford students.  This effort is inspired by his previous work Risk Analysis of Nuclear Deterrence, in which he concludes “We must immediately start work to reduce the risk of a failure of nuclear deterrence and not stop until it reaches an acceptable level.”  With the assistance of the Stanford community, perhaps his goal can be achieved.

Pi Beta Phi is hosting an event to this end on Wednesday, February 17, 2010 at 6:30pm which features Dr. Joseph C. Martz, a nuclear weapons design expert.  The flyer reads:

Dr. Martz led the Los Alamos team that designed their entry in the Reliable Replacement Warhead (RW) competition for the next generation nuclear weapon. Prof. Hellman performed the first analysis to show the unacceptable risk such weapons pose. At this event, you’ll learn why they agree that Stanford students are needed to help defuse this nuclear threat.

(Full disclosure: the author is involved with Prof. Hellman’s efforts.)