Doctoral Dissertation Student, Gabrielle Hecht; topic: "Technological Choice and Cultural Change: The French Nuclear Program, 1945-69." Under the guidance of Professor Hughes, Ms. Hecht is exploring the genesis of the French nuclear program from 1945 to 1969. The study focuses on the design and operation of the gas-graphite reactors which constituted the French nuclear energy program in this time period. In the first part of the study, Ms. Hecht is tracing the ways in which the political, economic, and technological agendas of engineers, managers, public servants, and politicians became embodied in the design of these reactors. In the second part she is examining the emergence of nuclear safety regulations from the social, cultural, and technological context of the work practices of reactor operators. The third and final part explains early public perceptions of nuclear energy in France by looking at how nuclear plants affected regional lifestyles and economies. The study's aim is to explore the reciprocal relationships between technology and society as well as the emergence of different "nuclear cultures" among politicians, engineers, technicians, workers and local residents. It does so by analyzing a combination of interviews, archival documents, and publications. Its primary significance lies in its exploration of relationships between national political agendas and technological change through an analysis of the organization of work, and in its examination of relationships between technological choice and cultural change.
