From the movie “Oppenheimer” and some independent research, I learned that it took three years for the Manhattan Project to develop the atomic bomb. This is less time than the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the University of Pittsburgh took for their longterm studies on a group of rare childhood cancers in Washington County. I believe there are a few more parallels between these two studies or developments.
“Oppenheimer” neglected to mention Canonsburg’s role and sacrifices in the processing of uranium and the development of the atomic bomb, but, back in the 1920s, Marie Curie did a few studies in Canonsburg that led to the processing and storing of significant amounts of uranium in Canonsburg, from 1911 till today. Also, the Curie and Canonsburg contributions on studies of radiation were very important and instrumental in the development of the atomic bomb, plus many future scientific discoveries with radium. Curie died of radiation-induced leukemia.
At the end of the movie and life of Oppenheimer, he and Albert Einstein seemingly regretted their roles in developing the atomic bomb and the results that led to an unknown number of deaths.
Do we think the commission and the results of the Pennsylvania study on cancer clusters in Canonsburg will reveal and/or regret an unknown number of deaths, like the Manhattan Project? Do we think?
Dennis Smiddle
Canonsburg
The writer is a Pennsylvania representative for Citizens for Radioactive Radon Reduction.