Smith, Eric Charles William (Oral history)

British civilian research chemist at Imperial College, London and University of Leeds in GB, 1936-1945

REEL 1 Background in Barking and Maldon, GB, 1911-1936: family; education; death of father's cows from hydrogen manufactured for balloons on land at Barking. Aspects of period as research chemist at Imperial College, London, GB, 1936-1939: nature of his chemistry research; memories of Professors William Penney and Edward Teller; hearing first intimations of possibility of making atomic weapon. Recollections of period as research chemist at Imperial College London and University of Leeds in GB, 1939-1945: question of effect of wartime security on work of senior scientists; his work on incendiary weapons; problems of amount of heat produced by magnesium; need for presence of 'kindling' before magnesium incendiary would take effect; importance of incendiary bombs rather than high explosive ones; problems in manufacturering of Type J Mk I Incendiary Bomb because it produced a jet flame and how problem was solved; obstructiveness of university authorities to work on Type J Mk I Incendiary Bomb; development work on Type J Mk I Incendiary Bomb at Shenfield. REEL 2 Continues: reasons for solution of methane in hydrocarbon; use of thermite charge; reasons for wooden nose on Type J Mk I Incendiary Bomb; use of parachutes to slow bomb down; problems with mass production of Type J Mk I Incendiary Bomb; Prime Minister Winston Churchill's intervention in problem of production; reasons why Type J Mk I Incendiary Bomb only came into production in 1945; question of Air Marshal Arthur Harris's responsibility for bombing of Dresden, Germany, 13/2/1945; how test drop was ruined by US Army Air Force attacking target with conventional bombs; nature of raid on Dresden, Germany, 2/1945; relative freedom of action of scientists; his experimental work on unexploded German Air Force incendiaries and how they compared with British ones; anti-personnel handling device attached to German Air Force incendiaries. REEL 3 Continues: aerodynamic tests on Type J Mk I Incendiary Bomb at Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough; reasons why Type J Mk I Incendiary bomb was not used against Japan; work carried out on incendiary bomb to be used against Japan and reasons why it was never produced; question of air arming of incendiary bomb to be used against Japan; how Germans used peat insulation.