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UNIVERSIDAD COMPLUTENSE DE MADRID FACULTAD DE FILOLOGÍA Departamento De Filología Inglesa UNIVERSIDAD COMPLUTENSE DE MADRID FACULTAD DE FILOLOGÍA Departamento de Filología Inglesa ANÁLISIS HISTÓRICO Y FILOLÓGICO DE LOS INICIOS DE LA FISIÓN NUCLEAR MEMORIA PARA OPTAR AL GRADO DE DOCTOR PRESENTADA POR Natividad Carpintero Santamaría Bajo la dirección de la doctora Josephine Bregazzi, Madrid, 2002 ISBN: 978-84-8466-294-5 ©Natividad Carpintero Santamaría, 1993 UNIVERSIDAD COMPLUTENSE DE MADRID FACULTAD DE FILOLOGIA DEPARTAMENTO DE FILOLOGIA INGLESA t ANÁLISIS HISTORICO Y FILOLOGICO DE LOS INICIOS DE LA FISION NUCLEAR TEsis DOCTORAL NATIVIDAD CARPINTERO SANTAMARíA DIRIGIDA POR LA DRA. JOSEPHINE BREGAZZI MADRID 1992 2 Quiero dar las gracias a todos los científicos que me han dedicado a lo largo de estos alios su tiempo y su testimonio los cuales sin duda han servido para dar a este trabajo un gran rigor histórico. Vaya también mi gratitud a los miembros de la Sección de Ciencias Físicas de la Real Academia de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales que me otorgaron el premio de investigación Alfonso XIII de Historia de la Ciencia Aplicada, por mi labor de investigación directamente relacionada con esta tesis doctoral. Por último, y de forma especial, quiero dar las gracias a la Profesora Josephine Bregazzi, Profesora Titular de Lengua y Literatura Inglesa, mi directora, por su inestimable ayuda en la dirección de esta tesis y por haber puesto su confianza en mi a la hora de abordar un tema que no siempre ha resultado fácil de tratar. Esta tesis doctoral viene enmarcada en lo que es la historia de la ciencia, por un lado, y la filología comparada por otro. En el caso particular que nos ocupa, historia de la ciencia contemporánea americana e inglesa, teniendo que resaltar que para poder entenderla ha habido que hacer previamente el análisis de los acontecimientos científico-socio-políticos des arrollados en Estados Unidos y Europa durante las décadas de los años 30 y 40. El análisis de la misma se divide en tres pades, de las cuales las dos primeras son inseparables entre sí, pues para abordar el estudio filológico, se hace indispensable conocer su aspecto histórico. Este nos ha permitido emprender el análisis del lenguaje que surgió a raiz de esos acontecimientos socio-políticos. Prácticamente toda la bibliografía consultada, así como las conversaciones mantenidas con los precursores de la física moderna, se han realizado casi exclusivamente en inglés, lo que me ha pennitido establecer una relación profunda con esta lengua en sus dos importantes aspectos lingtiístico e histórico. INDICE Introducción . 1 Objeto de este trabajo y metodología 2 Documentación 4 Relación de científicos extranjeros entrevistados 5 Relación de científicos espafloles entrevistados 9 PRIMERA PARTE ANÁLISIS HISTÓRICO El descubrimiento de la fisión nuclear 11 Una panorámica histórica 11 El nacionalsocialismo y la emigración intelectual de los aflos 30 27 Kaiser Wilhelm Institut 37 El III Reich y su escepticismo en la investigación nuclear 49 Introducción 50 Desarrollo nuclear alemán 58 Fin de la investigación y detención de los científicos 79 Conclusiones 84 El desarrollo nuclear en el Reino Unido 92 Antecedentes 93 El Comité MAUD 102 Tube A]loys 115 La investigación nuclear en los Estados Unidos 120 Introducción 121 El papel de los científicos europeos en el establecimiento del proyecto nuclear americano 127 i El Comité Consultivo del Uranio 142 Centralización de los trabajos experimentales 147 El Comité de Política Militar: El Proyecto Manhattan 162 Integración de la misión británica en Los Alamos 179 Oak Ridge y Hanford 181 Oak Ridge 182 Hanford 185 Trinity 188 Hiroshima 191 Conclusiones 204 SEGUNDA PARTE ANÁLISIS FILOLÓGICO El lenguaje nuclear 206 Introducción 207 El lenguaje nuclear. Campos semánticos 216 El lenguaje de la física teórica 222 El lenguaje de la fisión nuclear 230 El lenguaje nuclear espaliol 237 Origen etimológico e histórico de los términos de la fisión nuclear 245 Análisis de los términos 246 Testimonio lingtiistico 288 Origen etimológico de los elementos transuránicos 292 Introducción 293 Análisis de los términos 302 Etimología de las panículas elementales 316 Introducción 317 Análisis de los términos 319 TERCERA PARTE TEsTIMONIO HISTÓRICO Edoardo Amaldi 354 Hans A. Bethe 360 Rudolph Peierls 367 Glenn T. Seaborg 373 Edward Teller 377 Carl F. von WeizsUcker .... 381 John Wheeler 399 CONCLUSIONES GENERALES 404 BIBLIOGRAFíA Bibliografía análisis histórico 411 Bibliografía análisis filológico 427 iii INTRODUCCION Entre los grandes acontecimientos científicos acaecidos en el siglo XX, los computadores, la exploración del espacio exteriory los avances en la biología molecular, el descubrimiento de la fisión nuclear va a ocupar uno de los capítulos más trascendentales y dramáticos de nuestra historia contemporánea y, en definitiva, de la historia de la humanidad desde sus orígenes. La fisión del uranio supone el nacimiento de la energía nuclear como una nueva fuente de energía. Pero sin embargo este descubrimiento tuvo unas características muy paniculares al desarrollarse en un momento histórico extremadamente delicado. El hallazgo tuvo lugar en Berlin en 1938 en medio de una Alemania en plena convulsión política y asimismo en los albores de la Segunda Quena Mundial. Esta situación de inseguridad y de crisis profunda generé a lo largo de toda la década de los aPios 30 una importante ola de emigración a los Estados Unidos, conocida como emigración intelectual al ser básicamente el exilio de cientos de científicos y profesores judíos, entre otros, que provocaron que Europa perdiera el liderazgo científico que había mantenido durante siglos y haciendo que la balanza de la ciencia se inclinase cualitativa y cuantitativamente a favor de los Estados Unidos, Esta situación de preguerra fué suficiente para que los Estados Unidos, Alemania y el Reino Unido intentaran desarrollar un explosivo nuclear que poder utilizar durante la contienda, Este es, precisamente, el tema principal de la primera parte del trabajo de investigación que aquí se presenta, es decir, el desarrollo histórico de la primera aplicación que se daría a la fisión del uranio y que culminé con los trágicos bombardeos de Hiroshima y Nagasaki. Esta tesis doctoral se divide en tres partes: Análisis histórico; análisis filológico y testimonio histórico. 1 En el análisis histórico se hace una exposición de los antecedentes científicos y del ambiente sociopolitico en el que el descubrimiento de la fisión se produce. A continuación se hace un análisis de lo que fué el proyecto nuclear alemán durante la guerra. Este capitulo se hace indispensable porque el temor a que el 1111 Reich desarrollara una bomba atómica fue el motivo fundamental que llevó a los científicos alemanes emigrados en el Reino Unido a llamar la atención de este gobierno para que investigara la posible fabricación de un arma nuclear. A continuación se exponen los desarrollos de esta investigación en el Reino Unido y, por último, en los Estados Unidos, hechos todos ellos ligados estrechamente a la historia contemporánea de estos dos paises y por extensión de la Europa Occidental. La segunda parte consiste en el análisis filológico de los términos más significativos dentro del campo de la ciencia nuclear, los cuales han sido divididos en tres partes: 1. Términos de la fisión nuclear 2. Términos correspondientes a los elementos transuránicos 3. Términos relativos a las partículas elementales. La tercera parte es el testimonio directo de siete de los más importantes científicos históricos en el dominio nuclear, dos de ellos premios Nobel de Ffsica y de Química I-Ians A. Bethe y Glenn T. Seaborg, respectivamente. El resto son Edoardo Amaldí (fallecido cl 5 de diciembre de 1989), Rudolph Peierls, Carl Friedrich von Weizs§cker, Edward Teller y John A. Wheeler. OBJETO DE ESTE TRABAJO Y METODOLOGíA Mi interés en elegir este tema para analizarlo, tanto desde su punto de vista histórico como filológico, parte principalmente de mi profesión como profesora de inglés científico-técnico en la E.T.S. de Ingenieros Industriales de la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. También me ha animado a realizar este estudio la ausencia prácticamente 2 absoluta de estudios de filología científica comparada en el campo de la ciencia nuclear para lo cual se hace irremediable un análisis histórico de la misma y del cual asimismo prácticamente no existe nada hecho al respecto en nuestro país, exceptuando pocas traducciones de libros extranjeros y una sola obra original de carácter recopilatorio. La metodología aplicada ha consistido en cuanto al estudio de la parte histórica se refiere, por un lado, a un análisis comparativo de las distintas fuentes bibliograficas relacionadas con el tema y, por otro, a la aplicación al trabajo de una serie de entrevistas personales mantenidas a lo largo de estos años en los que he tenido ocasión de hablar con importantes científicos de este siglo que han configurado de su mano la física teórica. El análisis lingilístico que encaja en el campo de la filología comparada, lo he realizado estudiando el origen de los vocablos y su etimología. He consultado y registrado las fuentes en las que el término ha aparecido por primera vez, cuando este aspecto era relevante. De cada una de las citas a las que hago alusión, he reflejado a pie de página la nota con los datos completos de la fuente bibliográfica o documental correspondiente. Asimismo importante es la transcripción de las entrevistas que he realizado, entre otros varios, a los siete científicos cuyos testimonios aporto. Las transcripciones de las entrevistas las he dejado en inglés, siguiendo la lengua que utilicé con ellos, con excepción de la entrevista a Edoardo Amaldi, el cual contestó a todo en italiano, su transcripción, por ello, la he hecho directamente en castellano. 3 DOCUMENTACION Una buena parte de la documentación utilizada la he obtenido en los siguientes centros: EXTRANJEROS: * Newman Laboratory of Nuclear Studies. Universidad de Comelí (Ithaca - N. York - EUA). * Hoover Institution. Universidad de Stanford (EUA). * Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory. Universidad de Berkeley (EUA). * Bodleian Library de Oxford.
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