Until 1945, electricity and the internal-combustion engine were the dominant sources of power for industry and transport in the 20th century, although in some parts of the industrialized world steam power and even older prime movers remained important. Early research in nuclear physics was more scientific than technological, stirring little general interest. In fact, from the work of Ernest Rutherford, Albert Einstein, and others to the first successful experiments in splitting heavy atoms in Germany in 1938, no particular thought was given to engineering potential. The war led the Manhattan Project to produce the fission bomb that was first exploded ...(100 of 38754 words)