Lecture 14: Technoscience and Warfare from Planet Dora to the Moon Flashcards
Why does this lecture mention “Planet Dora”?
It was a concentration camp that supplied labour for factories which built rockets
What flight model entered WWI?
The Model B entered into WWI into 1915 to 1918
Why Germany?
They were the first to use technoscience
What is technoscience?
‘big science’ of science, technology, government, universities, and private companies
What was the reason that Germany was superior and why they pushed technology forward so rapidly?
They were the first to come up with technoscience and used it as an approach to technological and scientific problems
What would happen if technoscience is at work for 5 years?
It granted civilizations such as America, Soviet Union, and Britain to get everything they need after the war. However, America and Soviet Union would use these technologies to a higher extent than Britain
List a few things that changed the world which came from Germany.
- Atomic Energy: The Germans would split the atom to create an atomic bomb. For instance, the Manhattan Project
- Modern Computers: Z3 has a memory of 60 words (1943) and Z4 was the first commercial use (1944)
- Television: not invented by Nazi Germany but would use it for boardcasting
- Radio controlled devices
- Magnetophon K1 (1935): Used to record voices very precisely without distortion, and store information to magnetic tapes
- First Guided missiles VI: relatively primitive compare to the radio controlled devices. It was powered by a jet engine, a pulse jet engine. Super cheap to produce but need to be ejected
What influence the world from Germany?
It was their modern design/style, such as the Volkswagen Beetle from 1930s Germany
What is the fundamental shift in what technology and science should be?
The fundamental shift (Ipsa scientia potestas est) went from technology to technoscience
What is technology?
Coping with the environment/ solve problems
What is technoscience?
Destroy/control but after the war, it was about making money
Who is Fritz Haber (1868 - 1934)?
Nicknamed as “Dr. Death”, he was a Jewish and German chemist and noble prize winner
Is Fritz Haber the “father” of technoscience?
He didn’t invent it but was the first to see technoscience as an application to a large scale by establishing the first institue
What was the original purpose of technoscience?
It was to harm or to kill in large quantities, such as Fritz Haber’s poisonous gas
What was the side effect from the Zyklon research?
It led to the use in concentration camps under the name Zyklon B
What is the name of the first institute of technoscience?
Kaiser Wilhelm
What is the notion of Capitalism?
The strong (upper class) would always be the rulers to the lower class. The Germans would use this to a great extent
What is Social Darwinism?
Biological theory to social/racial theory (weak is to be eliminated)
What is Eugenics?
Human race can be improved by eliminating weak/unwanted. The result of this movement led to the concentration camps
How are the “weak/unwanted” determined by?
Craniometry and IQ test. Where Craniometry would determine the size of the skull
What was German’s approach to warfare?
Instead of fighting armies, it was about murdering and killing civilian population
Where did the German’s get this idea?
From the British, the concept was introduced by Trenchard’s Doctrine
What was Trenchard’s doctrine based on?
The idea of capitalism, as it was cheaper and efficient to attack the unarmed civilians to force the government to surrender
What factor were the Germans using?
They used this concept to target those that are part of the “Aryan” race as propaganda
What was unique about the German’s approach to warfare?
They used the application of scientific theory and technology to mass murder
How would the Germans determine who would be exterminated?
They believe that Jews, Poles, Slavs, homosexuals, mentally ill, disabled, and those that refuse the Nazi doctrine are to be exterminated
What was the estimated number of civilian population exterminated?
roughly 30% of civilian population were exterminated
Why were concentration camps not unique according to Dr. Lech?
500 to 900 concentration camps were set up throughout Europe and Germany. Most of the concentration camps were not the same as some work camps
What was unique about the concentration camps in Poland?
They were set up almost exclusively as extermination camps
Why would the Germans kill the women and children?
Women would continue to reproduce children and the children would grow up and form armies
What else did concentration camps were used for?
Coming directly from capitalism and industralization, the concentration camp would be used as a factory for human disassembly to produce soaps, brushes, and furnishes
What happen to the surviving Nazi war criminals?
They would be protected and live a good life in exchange for Nazi technologies
Why were tanks important to this lecture?
Hitler was obsessed with tanks and partial reasons as to why the Germans were defeated
What did Hitler believed in terms of the tank?
He believed that winning the war means having bigger and better tanks
What is the famous tank in WWII?
The Tiger I
Why were the American troops terrified of the Tiger I?
It could destroy a Sherman tank from 1 km and has impenetrable armour
What was the downfall of the Tiger I?
The Tiger I was over engineered to the point that it was too heavy and would consume a lot of fuel
When the 6 Tiger Is were built, what was Hitler’s motive?
His motive’s led to his arrogance that the six Tiger Is would win the war and Russia will run away
What happens to 6 Tiger Is after being dispatched to Russia?
They sunk as the location was a swamp
Which tanks were also better during WWII?
Soviet Union’s T-34
Which of the Designers were a friend of Hitler?
Porsche as he designed the Mouse Porsche for Hitler’s birthday
What is unique about the Mouse Porsche?
- Weighted 190 tons which make it the biggest tank
- The tank was so heavy that it was a hybrid. Meaning that the electrical engines were attached to the drives of the tank. The electrical internal engines were powered by an internal combustion engine
- Modified to become a submarine to travel on riverbeds
Was the Mouse Porsche useful?
It was completely useless as it would sink due to a soft bed of the river. It couldn’t achieve higher speeds, as its highest speed is walking speed
What tank did Hitler design?
He designed a tank called the Rat that weighed 1000 ton
Who is Heinz Guderian (1888–1954)
A general that propose Hitler the idea of Blitzkrieg
What is the Blitzkrieg?
The “Lightning War” or “Instant War” was a fast moving tank during the early stages of WWII
What other transportation technology did Germany use?
They used motorcycles to help mobilize Nazi troops
Which manufacture create these motorcycles?
BMW, Zundapp, DKW or Audi
What specific bike was considered the war bike?
The BMW R75 Sahara
What was unique about the bike?
- It had a MG42 or MG34 machne gun
- Able to supply three soldiers with weaponry and survival tools
- An air filter that is located at the top of the motorcycle including the exhaust system
- It had complex tranmission system
Revisting the metallurgy of Me 262, what new invention did the Germans invent?
A new system of propulsion for rocketry
What is unique about rockets?
Rockets being used for airplanes, it can achieve a speed from 800 km/h to 1000 km/h. It can also reach the speed of sound and beyond
What is the first rocket powered aircraft?
The Me 163
What are the little propellers at the front used for?
It was to power the generators
Why did the British believe that the Me 163 is the final development?
It had to do with the speed of the rocket powered aircraft
What fuel was the Me 163 using?
Two unstable substances: T-stoff and C-stoff
What is the flaw of Me 163?
It would explode killing German soldiers and was too fast such that it misses the opportunity to attack with the bombers
What is the next secret aircraft of the Germans?
The first-powered bomber is Ju 287 (1944)
What consequence did Ju 287 bring?
The consequence became noticeable during the cold war as it was about constructing large bombers which can drop nuclear weapons on to enemies
What is unique about the Ju 287?
- It has four jet engines and four rocket engines. The four rocket engines would be used for rapid take-offs
- The shape of the wings that gives better performance at certain altitudes and speed
What aircraft would copy the shape of the Ju 287?
The SU-47 which was an attempt from America and Soviet Union
At the final stages of the war, what were the Germans designing and constructing?
Vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft which introduced the Ba 349 (1945)
What was unique about the Ba 349?
- It had 1 liquid-fuelled rocket and four solid -fuelled rockets
- It can go up extremely fast to intercept bombers while achieving the speed of sound (1230 km/h)
*When the nose faced toward the Earth, it shoots multiple rocket
What was the flaw of the Ba 349?
It killed many pilots due to the supersonic speed and acceleration during takeoff
What secret aircraft did the German make?
The Germans created UFOs
What is the problem with their UFO?
It can only go up and down by a directional nozzle. However, the UFO couldn’t stay stable and couldn’t move left and right.
What country would design/build the UFO?
Canada would be designing the avrocar
What did Germany design towards the end of WWII?
They designed the Silver Bird (1940s), which was a space shuttle
What was the purpose of the Silver Bird?
To fly directly to orbit than nose diving to drop bombs on American cities
What happen to the Silver bird?
It was never finished
What were the Americans building in secrecy?
They were building the F-86 which is the fastest and most advanced jet
What were the Russians building in secrecy?
Similar to the Americans but it was called Mig 15
What was the aftermath when both of these aircraft meet?
In 1950, the F-86 and Mig 15 would meet creating confusion. This was due to the Americans and Russians sharing the same set of blueprints from the Focke-Wulf Ta-1
Who is Hermann Oberth (1894 - 1989)?
He was a German leading scientist that wrote a PhD thesis, “By Rocket into Planetary Space” (1922)
Did Hermann Oberth obtain his PhD?
No
Who is Werhner von Braun (1912–1977)?
He was a former Nazi scientist/engineer and student of Hermann Oberth, who built 12 rockets for Adolf Hitler
What is Werhner von Braun’s 12 rockets?
A1 - A12, A4 would be the most famous rocket
What is the A10?
An intercontinental ballistic missile that was build in the 1940s
What is the purpose of the A10?
It would go into space and come down on American cities, but Hitler had an obsession with London
What happen to the A10?
It got destroyed by the allies
What is the A12 rocket?
It was a spacecraft that would be named as the Saturn rocket when built in America
Why wasn’t it built in Germany?
Hitler had no interest and was only obsessed with destroying London
What is the first man-made object in space?
In 1942, the A4 (V2) rocket was sent into space which makes it a technological marvel resulting in its mass production
Why would the A4 be a true marvel?
- It was a true marvel due to being unstoppable, to travel 4 times the speed of sound (5200 km/h). Making it a stealth rocket
- Two gyroscopes in the nose and they send signal to onboard computer which in turn steered the graphite fins
How many lives did the A4 rocket claim?
It claimed 6 lives from the worker on average
What was considered the “technological marvel, Aladdin’s cave”?
The Mittelwek factory that mass produce A4 missiles in the last stage of WII
Recalling Dora, What was Wernher von Braun doing?
During his career as an SS officer, he was selecting prisoners from Auschwitz to be transported to Dora to construct the A4 (V2) rockets in Mittelwerk
What was Wernher von Braun’s famous quote?
“Science does not have a moral dimension… Once the rockets are up who cares where they come down, that is not my department”. This led to the discourse in scientific and engineering community
Which group was trying to bring Wernher von Braun to justice?
The survivors of Dora but was unsuccessful due to Braun’s past erased, photos, document destroyed/hidden by America
What is the difference between America and Soviet Union’s treatment to captured Nazi Scientist?
- America: Wernher von Braun was given good care by giving him a good salary, a home, a citizen, and a professor
- Soviet Union: Scientists were treated like prisoners and families were also taken to Russia as well
What did the Soviet Union make and what did it start?
They created the Vostok (R7) which spark the first space race
What is the Sputnik 1 (October 4, 1957)?
It was a nuclear ballistic missile
What did the Sputnik 1 symbolize?
It symbolize the push of the button warfare and made the Soviet Union seem superior in producing better technologies
What was the result of the Sputnik 1?
- Wernher von Braun became director of NASA (1958)
- 1961, Vostok (R7) was transporting the first human, Yuri Gargarin
- 1963, Valentina Teresheva was the first women in space
- 1966, Luna 9 lands on the moon
- 1966, Venera 3 is the first to reach Venus
- 1968, Zond 5 is the first to orbit the moon and return to Earth
- July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong was aboard the Apollo 11 Apollo 11
