The atom bomb was one of the defining inventions of the 20th Century. So how did science fiction writer HG Wells predict its invention three decades before the first detonations, asks Samira Ahmed.

Born 125 years ago, the Hungarian–American physicist Leo Szilard is best remembered for being the first scientist to call for atomic bombs to be developed – before later demanding they be stopped. But ...

Leo Szilard was the man who first realised that nuclear power could be used to build a bomb of terrifying proportions. Lisa Jardine considers what his story has to say about the responsibilities of ...

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. Seventy-five years ago, Hungarian-American physicist Leo Szilard wrote a letter to United States ...

On this day in 1939, a crucial letter was delivered to President Franklin D. Roosevelt that led to the beginnings of the Manhattan Project, which would eventually produce the first atomic bombs during ...

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Chaos reigns at the border as the United States confronts a massive influx of immigrants. Some, in fear for their lives, seek asylum from brutal regimes. Others seek the ever-elusive American dream.

All products featured on WIRED are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links. Learn more. __1930: ...

I am writing to you to introduce Dr. L[eo]. Szilard who proposes to submit to you certain considerations and recommendations. Unusual circumstances, which I shall describe further below, induce me to ...

Pardon the quote from the American rock band Cracker's lyrics to "Low": Sometimes I want to take you down/Sometimes I want to get you low/ Brush your hair back from your eyes/Take you down let the ...