physics

Nuclear Times

Nuclear Times is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Nuclear Times rather than just read about it. In short: Nuclear Times was a magazine devoted to nuclear disarmament that was published from 1982 to 1992. "Devoted to education between and communication among peace activists," contributors to the magazine included "journalists, scholars, and activists." The magazine was noted for its practice of listing "organizational resources keyed to each issue's articles." Nuclear Times was characterized by The New York Times as "the…

Key takeaways

Nuclear Times belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Nuclear Times to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Nuclear Times from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Nuclear Times was a magazine devoted to nuclear disarmament that was published from 1982 to 1992. "Devoted to education between and communication among peace activists," contributors to the magazine included "journalists, scholars, and activists." The magazine was noted for its practice of listing "organizational resources keyed to each issue's articles." Nuclear Times was characterized by The New York Times as "the peace movement's most popular magazine." The magazine is not related to a later e-newsletter published by the United Steelworkers to "share the latest news and information for atomic workers in the United States and Canada."

Publication history

Launch Nuclear Times was launched in October 1982, with Greg Mitchell serving as the publication's first editor. Set up as a nonprofit, members of the magazine's board of directors included Hodding Carter III, Adam Hochschild, Anne Mollegen Smith, and Thomas Powers. In a United Press International article about the magazine's launch, Nuclear Times claimed to be "the first of its kind, devoted exclusively to reporting on the grass-roots disarmament movement." It said it would "provide both in-depth and independent coverage of the personalities, events, and issues comprising the growing anti-nuclear weapons movement." The magazine's first issue "include[d] a report on the status of nuclear freeze referendums, an opinion column, an essay on 'Bringing the Bomb Home', and a calendar of upcoming anti-nuclear activities throughout the country." Nuclear Times was supported by subscribers, advertising, and foundation support; "it received a total of $74,300 [in foundation support] in 1984," with the largest contribution coming from the Field Foundation of New York.

Closure The magazine suspended publication in August 1989, essentially put out of business by the peace movement's own success — the relaxing of tensions in the Cold War.

Relaunch and demise The magazine was revived by a new, Boston-based, publisher in 1990, with John Tirman at the head. In a 1991 round-up, author Grant Burns described how the magazine had...

evolved to serve as a wide-angle guide to the antiwar and antinuclear movements. It retains a primary focus on nuclear weapons and nuclear war issues, but also features commentary and assessments concerning political and military hotspots around the world (e.g., the Soviet crackdown in the Baltics, militarism in Japan, the Persian Gulf) that harbor the potential for far wider conflict. On the nuclear front, the magazine has recently featured articles on proliferation, nuclear deterrence in the context of the declining Cold War, and nuclear test protests in the Soviet Union. The relaunched Nuclear Times lasted two years before permanently ceasing publication in 1992.

Between Fear and Hope Nuclear Times managing editor Sonia Shah edited Between Fear and Hope: A Decade of Peace Activism Compiled from Nuclear Times Magazine, 1982 to Present, published by Fortkamp Publishing Company in January 1992. In a review, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists wrote, "The book ... is very useful for students of social movement strategy and communication, and it is a handy, accessible resource for organizers working for common security. Between Fear & Hope advances our knowledge of one of the largest and most important social movements in recent U.S. history."

Notable staff David Corn, associate editor/senior editor/contributing editor (1982–c. 1987) Sonia Shah, managing editor (1990–1992)

References

External links Nuclear Times issue of July/August 1987

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Nuclear Times

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Nuclear Times claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Nuclear Times before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Nuclear Times ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Nuclear Times

In research: Nuclear Times appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Nuclear Times in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Nuclear Times is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Anti-nuclear movement, Magazines disestablished in 1992, Magazines established in 1982, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Nuclear Times outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Nuclear Times in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Nuclear Times means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Nuclear Times out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Nuclear Times in simple terms?

Why does Nuclear Times matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Nuclear Times?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Nuclear Times.