“Flagging Dual-Purpose Research in the Physical Sciences”
In the context of nuclear (non-)proliferation, it’s important to understand what can be considered dual-purpose research (meaning that it has peaceful and non-peaceful uses either on purpose or otherwise). In this talk, I will briefly mention the historical role of academic scientists in nuclear weapons research. Then, expanding on the criteria established by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s “Toward a Nuclear Firewall” report, which assesses how to determine how credible it is that a nuclear program is peaceful, and the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons’ “Schools of Mass Destruction” report, which identified campuses tied into the US nuclear weapons program, we pinpoint technical aspects of contemporary research in the physical sciences that can have a dual purpose, especially features that are not obviously connected to nuclear weapons. I will also briefly discuss the role of nuclear research not directly related to nuclear weapons in the Brazilian military and challenges that the non-proliferation regime will face inspecting and verifying similar programs. This physics-based project to aid in nuclear non-proliferation efforts is still in its inception, and we welcome feedback from the scientific and policy communities.
Co-sponsored by the Kimball Smith Series.
Hosts: Anthony Asuega-Souza, Jorge Torres