Talk:Westinghouse Atom Smasher
![]() | A fact from Westinghouse Atom Smasher appeared on Wikipedia's Main Page in the Did you know column on 27 February 2015 (check views). The text of the entry was as follows:
| ![]() |
![]() | This article is rated Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale. It is of interest to the following WikiProjects: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Better name?
editI'm pretty sure the official name for this facility was not "Westinghouse Atom Smasher". I suggest this page be moved to a more appropriate name. If we can't find the official name, something like Westinghouse 1937 Van de Graaff accelerator might be more specific and informative. --ChetvornoTALK 22:56, 14 April 2015 (UTC)
- According to the Wikipedia:Article titles#Common names, "Wikipedia prefers the name that is most commonly used (as determined by its prevalence in reliable English-language sources) as such names will be the most recognizable and the most natural". Take a look at all the sources, Westinghouse Atom Smasher is the most prevalent and recognizable name for this object, so it should remain where it is. --GrapedApe (talk) 10:29, 22 April 2015 (UTC)
- Well, I have to agree with you. Normally if an accelerator is notable it is commonly referred to by its name; nobody calls the Large Hadron Collider the "Geneva Atom Smasher". But I can't find much reference to the Westinghouse machine in technical literature. Its useful life was short; it was apparently obsolete soon after it was completed. And there is some speculation that it was just built for PR purposes, as a prestige item to attract scientific talent to Westinghouse. I guess its most notable role was as a Pittsburgh-area landmark, and the Landmark Commission calls it the "Westinhouse Atom Smasher", so Westinghouse Atom Smasher it is. --ChetvornoTALK 15:58, 22 April 2015 (UTC)
- Interesting--are you aware of any references that may have been built mostly for PR purposes? That would be worth adding.--GrapedApe (talk) 12:42, 25 April 2015 (UTC)
- Just this Pittsburgh Post-Gazette op-ed piece. Looks like the only hard evidence were some quotes from the WH board that the machine's high cost was justified "to obtain good publicity value". --ChetvornoTALK 09:59, 27 April 2015 (UTC)
Additional information to lead
editI am going to be adding additional information to the lead section about what the atom smasher did or what it was used for. El.Guapo6564 (talk) 17:27, 3 March 2023 (UTC)
Adding a wartime effort section
editWhat the atom smasher and its workers did during the second world war and what happened after. Ijggrz (talk) 17:43, 3 March 2023 (UTC)
Adding more information to the wartime effort section
editAdding some more information that I have found about the wartime efforts during World War 2.--Ijggrz (talk) 22:30, 7 April 2023 (UTC) Attaching Edward Condon's (E.U. Condon) Wikipedia article to his name in this article — Preceding unsigned comment added by Ijggrz (talk • contribs) 16:20, 14 April 2023 (UTC)
Adding a History Section
editI will be adding a history section to the article along with information in the section. El.Guapo6564 (talk) 04:32, 8 April 2023 (UTC)
Wiki Education assignment: History of Science
editThis article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 17 January 2023 and 5 May 2023. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): El.Guapo6564, Ijggrz (article contribs). Peer reviewers: Patkeo6, Audrey Metcalf.
— Assignment last updated by K8shep (talk) 18:03, 12 March 2023 (UTC)