This film is part of Free
Report on the Atom
Made to reassure as well as educate, this film takes the viewer into the nuclear reactors of the Atomic Energy Commission to reveal the potential benefits of this new power source.
Overview
A detailed look at America’s nuclear programme, this informative March of Time report focuses on the peacetime benefits of atomic energy. Taking us from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee to the Argonne Laboratory near Chicago, the film explains how radioactive isotopes are made, and their applications in agriculture, medicine and industry. The real goal - harnessing atomic energy to generate power - is revealed to still be some way off.
Although lacking some of the spark of earlier films in the series, this report from 1949 manages to give a thorough overview of the subject with the help of some interesting behind-the-scenes footage, which helps to compensate for the somewhat plodding narration. Offering a comprehensive overview of the state of atomic energy research in the USA, the film was made with the technical assistance and under the security control of the Atomic Energy Commission.
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