Reviewed by:

• Big Science Fiction: Kernfusion und Popkultur in den USA by Simon Märkl
• Jan-Henrik Meyer (bio)

The original idea for this book is reflected in its title: “Big Science” always involves expectations about the future and the aim to shape it through technology. To raise the necessary public funding, big science promoters rely on fictitious narratives about the future and the potential benefits of their technology. Such “big science fiction” is more persuasive if it resonates with popular culture. Simon Märkl’s case is well-chosen: nuclear fusion has been one of the largest post-war big science goals. Unlike electronics, space and nuclear fission, fusion has nevertheless remained futuristic. Neither its technological feasibility nor its commercial worth has ever been demonstrated.

Märkl’s book, based on his Ph.D. thesis at the Rachel Carson Center in Munich, looks at the United States’ experience. This purely national focus is justified by the specifics of the U.S. media system and the role of popular culture in American society. Imported media content such as Godzilla (p. 67), originating from Japan, is only occasionally mentioned. Märkl covers the Cold War era, clearly the heyday of big science, between 1945 and 1991.

In his introduction, Märkl discusses key concepts like big science, popular culture and the public sphere, their function and relations, with a view to the state of the art in STS and history of science and technology. In a “discourse history” (p. 16) he analyses an impressively wide range of media in popular culture: from propagandistic documentaries, critical feature films like Dr. Strangelove and television series, to image-driven Time and Life magazines and leading quality newspapers like the New York Times, graphic novels, scientific books like Herman Kahn’s On Thermonuclear War, government publications, and both popular and academic journals. In terms of methodology, a more systematic discussion on the choice of sources, potential differences—but also interactions—between genres and materials would [End Page 983] have greatly strengthened the study. A brief presentation of the various actors in fusion research, including key individuals like the notorious Edward Teller, their goals and linkages to military and civilian institutions, and the nuclear sector more generally, would have been useful.

Drawing on Joan Lisa Bromberg’s periodization of the history of nuclear fusion, Märkl divides its public history and his chapters by decades. One of the constant themes of the fusion discourse is that it will solve the energy issue once and for all, by providing endless supplies. What changes, however, is its embedding in contemporary debates. Fusion research started with the hydrogen bomb in the early 1950s. Märkl highlights the similarities in the political representation of fission and fusion. Given the initial association with military uses, the United States felt almost compelled to promise civilian uses, for the good of society and humanity. Such rhetoric continued well into the 1960s, notably in the Atomic Energy Commission’s PR.

One of Märkl’s most surprising observations regarding the 1970s is how well nuclear fusion research fared in terms of government funding. In the wake of the oil crisis, its promises obviously trumped the critical and popular debates with a view to growth, consumer society, big science and large corporations, and the rise of environmentalism. However, these observations somewhat contradict Märkl’s assumption in the introduction, that popular culture and the public sphere crucially impact government decision-making.

Märkl’s account closes with the retrofuturism of the 1980s: ironic visions of small fusion reactors feeding on junk. After a second oil crisis and Three Mile Island, energy appeared more as a “problem, rather than a promise” (p. 182). Towards the end of the Cold War, fusion—once the object of that war’s competition—again served peaceful purposes, by internationalizing research across the Cold War divide.

The author offers a highly interesting and jargon-free essay on the public history of nuclear fusion, singling out its core themes, political and cultural embedding, and change over time. The book’s text would have...

审核人：

• 大型科幻小说：西蒙·马克尔（SimonMärkl）的美国书房中的“核子与流行”
• Jan-Henrik Meyer（生物）

本书的原始思想反映在其书名中：“大科学”始终涉及对未来的期望以及通过技术塑造未来的目标。为了筹集必要的公共资金，大型科学促进者依赖于有关未来及其技术潜在利益的虚构叙述。如果这种“大科幻小说”与流行文化产生共鸣，则更具说服力。西蒙·梅克（SimonMärkl）的案子是精心选择的：核聚变一直是战后最大的科学目标之一。与电子，空间和核裂变不同，聚变仍然是未来主义。它的技术可行性和商业价值都没有得到证实。

Märkl的书基于他的博士学位 慕尼黑Rachel Carson中心的论文着眼于美国的经验。美国媒体系统的特殊性和流行文化在美国社会中的作用证明了这种纯粹的国家重点。仅偶尔提到了源自日本的进口媒体内容，例如哥斯拉（第67页）。Märkl涵盖了1945年至1991年之间的冷战时代，这显然是大科学的鼎盛时期。

在介绍中，Märkl讨论了诸如大型科学，大众文化和公共领域等关键概念，它们的功能和关系，以期了解STS和科学技术史的最新状况。在《话语史》（第16页）中，他分析了大众文化中令人印象深刻的各种媒体：从宣传纪录片，像Strangelove博士这样的重要故事片和电视连续剧，到以图像为主导的《时代与生活》杂志和一流的优质报纸如《纽约时报》，图画小说，科学书籍，如赫尔曼·卡恩的《热核战争》，政府出版物以及流行和学术期刊。在方法论上，对来源的选择了较为系统的论述，电位差，而且相互作用之间的流派和材料将[尾页983]已经大大加强了研究。简要介绍融合研究中的各个参与者，包括臭名昭著的爱德华·泰勒（Edward Teller）等关键人物，他们的目标以及与军事和民用机构以及更广泛的核部门的联系，将很有用。

Märkl借鉴了Joan Lisa Bromberg对核聚变历史的周期划分，将其公共历史及其章节划分了数十年。融合话语的不变主题之一是，它将通过提供无休止的供应一劳永逸地解决能源问题。然而，改变的是它嵌入了当代辩论中。融合研究始于1950年代初期的氢弹。Märkl强调了裂变与融合的政治代表制的相似之处。考虑到最初与军事用途有关，美国几乎被迫承诺为社会和人类的利益承诺民用用途。这种言论一直持续到1960年代，特别是在原子能委员会的PR中。

关于1970年代，马克尔最令人惊讶的发现之一就是核聚变研究在政府资助方面的表现如何。在石油危机之后，其承诺显然超过了关键的和流行的辩论，以期实现增长，消费者社会，大型科学和大型公司以及环保主义的兴起。但是，这些观点在某种程度上与Märkl在引言中的假设相矛盾，即大众文化和公共领域对政府决策产生了至关重要的影响。

Märkl的观点以1980年代的追溯未来主义为结尾：具有讽刺意味的小型聚变反应堆以垃圾为食的构想。在第二次石油危机和三英里岛之后，能源似乎更多地是“问题而不是承诺”（第182页）。在冷战即将结束之际，通过使研究跨越冷战鸿沟国际化，融合（曾经是战争的竞争对象）再次出于和平目的。

作者提供了关于核聚变的公共历史的非常有趣且无术语的文章，指出了核聚变的核心主题，政治和文化内涵以及随着时间的变化。这本书的文字应该是...