The atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki marked the end of the WWII—and also heralded the beginning of the nuclear arms race. Simultaneously, the peaceful potential of nuclear energy was held out as the hope of the future, offering cheap, clean, and unlimited energy. But early optimism and enthusiasm evaporated as the dangers of radiation and nuclear accidents became evident. Authoritarian governments ignored challenges to nuclear energy programs caused by popular apprehensions, but all governments encountered growing evidence of the costs of such programs.

The people remember: the atomic bomb, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, nuclear testing, Cuban Missile crisis, protest movements, Three Mile Island, Chernobyl.