Karl Ziegler Morgan (September 27, 1907 – June 8, 1999), was an American
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe.
Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate caus ...
who was one of the founders of the field of
radiation health physics. Late in life, after a long career in the
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development undertaking during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with the support of the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the project w ...
and at
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is a U.S. multiprogram science and technology national laboratory sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and administered, managed, and operated by UT–Battelle as a federally funded research and ...
, he became a
critic of nuclear power and
nuclear weapons
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...
production.
Born in
Enochville, North Carolina
Enochville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Rowan County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,851 at the 2000 census.
History
The census-designated place had previously been an incorporated town, one of the oldest in Rowan Co ...
, Karl Morgan attended
Lenoir-Rhyne College (now University) as a freshman and sophomore and then transferred to the
University of North Carolina
The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...
, where he graduated with bachelor's and master's degrees in physics and
mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
. He continued
graduate study
Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate ( bachelor's) degree.
The organization and stru ...
in physics at
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...
, where he received a PhD degree in 1934 for research into
cosmic radiation
Cosmic rays are high-energy particles or clusters of particles (primarily represented by protons or atomic nuclei) that move through space at nearly the speed of light. They originate from the Sun, from outside of the Solar System in our own ...
. He began an academic career as a faculty member at
Lenoir Rhyne College Lenoir may refer to:
Locations:
* Lenoir, North Carolina, United States
* Lenoir County, North Carolina, United States
* Lenoir City, Tennessee
In Universities:
* Lenoir-Rhyne University
* Lenoir Dining Hall, a dining hall at the University of N ...
, but in 1943 was recruited to work in the
secret project to develop an
atomic bomb
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...
.
[
Initially at the University of Chicago Metallurgical Laboratory and later in Oak Ridge, Morgan joined a small group of physicists who were interested in the health effects of ]radiation
In physics, radiation is the emission or transmission of energy in the form of waves or particles through space or through a material medium. This includes:
* ''electromagnetic radiation'', such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visi ...
.
Morgan became director of health physics
Health physics, also referred to as the science of radiation protection, is the profession devoted to protecting people and their environment from potential radiation hazards, while making it possible to enjoy the beneficial uses of radiation. He ...
at Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is a U.S. multiprogram science and technology national laboratory sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and administered, managed, and operated by UT–Battelle as a federally funded research and ...
(ORNL), serving from the late 1940s until his retirement in 1972. In 1955 he became the first president of the Health Physics Society
The Health Physics Society (HPS) is a nonprofit scientific professional organization whose mission is excellence in the science and practice of radiation safety. It is based in the United States and the specific purposes of the society's activiti ...
, and was editor of the journal ''Health Physics'' from 1955 to 1977. After his retirement from ORNL, he joined the faculty of Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
as professor of nuclear energy in the school of nuclear engineering
Nuclear engineering is the branch of engineering concerned with the application of breaking down atomic nuclei ( fission) or of combining atomic nuclei (fusion), or with the application of other sub-atomic processes based on the principles of n ...
, retiring from that position in 1982, when he became a consulting professor at Appalachian State University
Appalachian State University (; Appalachian, App State, App, or ASU) is a public university in Boone, North Carolina. It was founded as a teachers college in 1899 by brothers B. B. and D. D. Dougherty and the latter's wife, Lillie Shull Dough ...
.["Dr. Karl Z. Morgan; Pioneer health physicist," ''The Oak Ridger'', June 10, 1999]
After decades as a "pillar of the nuclear establishment", Morgan had a "change of heart" about nuclear weapons
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...
production and nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...
. He began to offer court testimony which was friendly to people who said they had been harmed by nuclear weapons and the nuclear power industry. In October 1982, he testified in a lawsuit brought by nearly 1,200 people who accused the government of negligence in atomic weapons testing at the Nevada Test Site
The Nevada National Security Site (N2S2 or NNSS), known as the Nevada Test Site (NTS) until 2010, is a United States Department of Energy (DOE) reservation located in southeastern Nye County, Nevada, about 65 miles (105 km) northwest of th ...
in the 1950s, which they said had caused leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...
and other cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
s. Morgan, then 75 years old, testified that radiation protection measures in the tests were substandard.[Karl Z. Morgan, 91, Founder of the Field Of Health Physics, Dies in Tennessee]
/ref>
Morgan also testified on behalf of Navajo
The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native American people of the Southwestern United States.
With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest federally recognized tribe in the United ...
uranium mine
Uranium mining is the process of extraction of uranium ore from the ground. Over 50 thousand tons of uranium were produced in 2019. Kazakhstan, Canada, and Australia were the top three uranium producers, respectively, and together account f ...
rs and their survivors, saying government officials had known about mine radiation dangers but had not protected the miners. He also testified in the case of Karen Silkwood
Karen Gay Silkwood (February 19, 1946 – November 13, 1974) was an American chemical technician and labor union activist known for raising concerns about corporate practices related to health and safety in a nuclear facility.
She w ...
against Kerr-McGee
The Kerr-McGee Corporation, founded in 1929, was an American energy company involved in oil exploration, production of crude oil, natural gas, perchlorate and uranium mining and milling in various countries. On June 23, 2006, Anadarko Petroleum ...
.[
Morgan's autobiography, ''The Angry Genie: One Man's Walk Through the Nuclear Age'' was published in 1999 by the University of Oklahoma Press.][ He died in ]Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Oak Ridge is a city in Anderson and Roane counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee, about west of downtown Knoxville. Oak Ridge's population was 31,402 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Knoxville Metropolitan Area. Oak ...
, on June 8, 1999, apparently from a ruptured aortic
The aorta ( ) is the main and largest artery in the human body, originating from the left ventricle of the heart and extending down to the abdomen, where it splits into two smaller arteries (the common iliac arteries). The aorta distributes ox ...
aneurysm
An aneurysm is an outward bulging, likened to a bubble or balloon, caused by a localized, abnormal, weak spot on a blood vessel wall. Aneurysms may be a result of a hereditary condition or an acquired disease. Aneurysms can also be a nidus (s ...
.[
PhD John Cameron, the developer of a more accurate ]dosimeter
A radiation dosimeter is a device that measures dose uptake of external ionizing radiation. It is worn by the person being monitored when used as a personal dosimeter, and is a record of the radiation dose received. Modern electronic personal dos ...
in the 1960s, was however a major critic of Morgan's error prone autobiography that was otherwise interesting for its historical detailing of the Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development undertaking during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with the support of the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the project w ...
's health physics evolution. Cameron goes chapter by chapter of Morgan's generally "flawed" anti-nuclear stance, writing a critique in the year 2000 on Morgan's exaggeration of the small risks from exposure.A Flawed History of Radiation Protection by John Cameron, Ph.D
/ref>
See also
*Anti-nuclear movement in the United States
The anti-nuclear movement in the United States consists of more than 80 anti-nuclear groups that oppose nuclear power, nuclear weapons, and/or uranium mining. These have included the Abalone Alliance, Clamshell Alliance, Committee for Nuclear Re ...
*List of nuclear whistleblowers
There have been a number of nuclear whistleblowers, often nuclear engineers, who have identified safety concerns about nuclear power and nuclear weapons production.
List
Other nuclear whistleblowers
* Chuck Atkinson
* Dale G. Bridenbaugh
* Jo ...
*Nuclear safety
Nuclear safety is defined by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as "The achievement of proper operating conditions, prevention of accidents or mitigation of accident consequences, resulting in protection of workers, the public and the ...
References
External links
Human Radiation Studies: Remembering the Early Years; Oral History of Health Physicist Karl Z. Morgan, Ph.D.
conducted January 7, 1995, DOE/EH-0475, U.S. Department of Energy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Karl Z.
1908 births
1999 deaths
People from Enochville, North Carolina
People associated with nuclear power
Oak Ridge National Laboratory people
Manhattan Project people
People from Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Health physicists
Health Physics Society
Fellows of the American Physical Society