SECRECY AND SECURITY

Edward Teller has argued for decades that secrecy in American defense programs has been counterproductive. Secrecy limits the number of American scientists who can think productively about problems involving the defense of our nation. It also provides a false sense of security. Instead of building civil and strategic defenses and developing the best technology for defense, America has relied, in part, upon maintaining a monopoly of technical knowledge about weapons of mass destruction. Figure 1 from "Nuclear Weapons Supply and Demand'' by Michael M. May published in American Scientist, 82 November-December p 526-537 (1994) shows how well this policy has worked. A new nuclear-weapons state has been added every five years.