In 1953 a lead physicist lost the project of the H Bomb on a train

https://physicstoday.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/PT.3.4364

by 01acheru • 4 years ago

23 5 4 years ago

physicstoday.scitation.org

mc4ndr3• 4 years ago

So the war department's logic was, we'll just out-pizza the Hut.

andrew_• 4 years ago

"US physicist John Archibald Wheeler Lost H-Bomb Documents on a Train in 1953"

Original submission title was a little hard to parse.

fifilura2• 4 years ago

There is some kind of lesson to learn here I think.

It is not obvious what is the best, but the fact that he was required to carry the envelope with him at all times was itself a huge risk.

At least I forget things like that 10 times/day, but I guess I am a walking security hazard in lots of ways.

Maybe it would have been better to leave the letter anonymously in the suitcase?

EricE• 4 years ago

How about not being cheap and renting a private hotel room for starters?

fifilura2• 4 years ago

Yeah, that would certainly be an option although I think he was optimizing for (precious) time.

To continue my thinking... the analogue here is password renew policies. A well meaning and locally reasonable rule, actually leads to worse security.

In 1953 a lead physicist lost the project of the H Bomb on a train

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