Atomic Energy Commission

This project involves the digitization of all congressional hearings and committee prints of the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy. It is a pilot project to test the ability of the robotic book-scanner to digitize bound government documents.

The Joint Committee on Atomic Energy existed from 1946-1977. The committee was created to "make continuing studies of the activities of the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and of problems relating to the development, use, and control of atomic energy." Through hearings and other public informational activities, the committee played a significant role in encouraging peacetime uses of atomic energy. The committee dealt with such subjects as the budget authorization bills for the Atomic Energy Commission, international agreements regarding atomic energy stemming from President Dwight D. Eisenhower's "Atoms-For-Peace" speech of December 1953, and various mutual defense agreements. Examples of other matters the Committee covered include: developments at the national energy labs; health impacts of nuclear energy; and nuclear waste-management.