Logic, methodology and philosophy of science VIII proceedings of the eighth international congress of logic, methodology and philosophy of science, and philosophy of science proceedings) ( PDFDrive ) 43

P FEDOSEYEV 24 cooperation among nations The vital necessity of concerted efforts to avert the sinister threat to civilisation opens, in his opinion, an exclusive opportunity to overcome international contradictions He attached great significance to greater openness in technical progress and in military and political affairs, and emphasised the importance of timely consultations between countries to find the best ways to jointly achieve security Niels Bohr wrote that the top priority should be given to achieving an open world in which the role of each nation would be determined only by the measure in which it is able to promote general cultural progress and to help other countries with its resources and experience?2 The voices of outstanding scientists sounded ever louder with every passing year, warning about the deadly consequences of the nuclear rivalry and calling for an immediate intensification of the efforts to avert a nuclear catastrophe The Russell-Einstein Manifesto which appeared in 1955 on the initiative of the outstanding physicist F Joliot-Curie, is still relevant It said in particular: “To preserve life on our planet we, representatives of human beings, should learn to think in a new way and make practical steps excluding wars and the arms race.”23 Igor Kurchatov, the outstanding scientist, head of Soviet atomic physicists, repeatedly and insistently emphasised the need to prohibit atomic and hydrogen weapons, to develop a broad international cooperation in the peaceful use of atomic energy In his speech at a session of the USSR Supreme Soviet on March 31, 1958 he said: “We, Soviet scientists, are greatly alarmed by the fact that there is still no international agreement on the unconditional prohibition of atomic and hydrogen weapons Our scientific community has resolutely come out for outlawing the use of nuclear weapons Together with the Soviet scientists are foreign scientists of world renown: Niels Bohr of Denmark; Joliot-Curie of France; Pauling of the USA; Heisenberg of FRG; Yukawa of Japan; Powell of Great Britain; and many others From this high rostrum we, Soviet scientists, address scientists of the whole world with the appeal to direct and unite efforts to realise as soon as possible controlled thermonuclear reaction and to turn the energy of hydrogen nuclear fusion not into a weapon of destruction but into a powerful life-bearing source of energy bringing welfare and joy to all people on Earth.”24 1950, Scunce 112, 2897, pp 1-6 1960, Einstein on Peace (New York), p 633 24 Kuuc~i~mv, I.V., 1984, Selected Works,Russian edn (Moscow),vol 3, p 198 22 23