Abstract
SPECULATIONS as to the implications for material progress no less than for destructive purposes of the immense co-operative scientific effort that went to the evolution of the atomic bomb may tend to distract attention from some important issues relating to the progress of science itself. The profound secrecy in which this effort has been enveloped should emphasize the fact that for some six years the normal channels of communication between scientific men have been interrupted, and to restore such intercourse across national frontiers is the first step to stimulate the creative thought and exchange of knowledge and ideas upon which the progress of science finally depends. Sir Henry Dale has been prompt to point out, in a letter in The Times, that the preservation of civilization itself may now well depend on the fullest freedom of scientific intercourse. The abandonment of any national claim to secrecy about scientific discoveries, he suggests, must be a pre-requisite for any kind of international control such as will be indispensable if we are to use atomic energy to its full value and avoid the final disaster which its misuse might bring.
Article PDF
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Freedom of Scientific Intercourse. Nature 156, 215–217 (1945). https://doi.org/10.1038/156215a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/156215a0