Life after the Bomb. Nuclear Fear, Science, and Security Politics in Switzerland in the 1980s.

Berger Ziauddin, Silvia Franziska; Marti, Sibylle (2020). Life after the Bomb. Nuclear Fear, Science, and Security Politics in Switzerland in the 1980s. Cold War History, 20(1), pp. 95-113. Taylor & Francis 10.1080/14682745.2018.1536121

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At the beginning of the 1980s, global aftermath studies prompted new perceptions of a nuclear war’s long-term effects on Planet Earth. Focusing on the Swiss ‘Weiterleben’ (‘to live on’) study, which translated these findings into a local context, the paper sheds light on the intertwined history of global politics, science, national security debates, and nuclear fear. It reveals important socio-political and epistemic shifts in the 1980s. Even in countries with comprehensive civil defence systems like Switzerland, the idea that a nuclear war was manageable came to an end; new forms of planning and types of scientific reasoning evolved that superseded ‘Cold War rationality’; and, finally, emotions became a crucial political factor.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

06 Faculty of Humanities > Department of History and Archaeology > Institute of History > Institute of History, Modern and Contemporary History

UniBE Contributor:

Berger Ziauddin, Silvia Franziska, Marti, Sibylle

ISSN:

1468-2745

Publisher:

Taylor & Francis

Language:

English

Submitter:

Carole Zoé Mast

Date Deposited:

10 Sep 2019 12:36

Last Modified:

24 Jan 2024 12:57

Publisher DOI:

10.1080/14682745.2018.1536121

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.126150

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/126150

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