E.U. Condon: Science, Religion, and the Politics of World Peace

摘要

I set forth and discuss E.U. Condon’s views on science and society, focusing specifically on Condon’s views on science and religion, science and government, and the necessity for world peace. Even disregarding his contributions to theoretical physics, Condon proves an interesting case study for several reasons. He had extensive experience in academia, industry, and government, and was a scientist who easily crossed the insider-outsider divide between scientists in Cold War America. Moreover, Condon was a person of the Progressive Left advocating World Government as necessary for peace and warning of the dangers of the militarization of American society as well as of science itself. Known for being outspoken, he became an inviting target for the forces of anticommunism in Cold War America. In March 1948, the House Un-American Activities Committee charged that Condon was “one of the weakest links in our atomic security.”