World War 2 Technological Development Essay
Technological Development During World War Two:
Historical Perspective
World War Two is seen by many as one of the darkest times in human history. In western history the Allies won, but it could have so easily ended differently. Throughout the war, key technological advances were made and shared between allies on either side. During this short time, amazing new ideas about communication, radar and vehicles were brought to life. Surprisingly, even with all these advances, no single side had superior technology in every single aspect. In reality, it was how the technology was used, and if mistakes were made that determined the outcome of the war. Many scholars and historians have agreed that the technology on either side of the war was relatively equal. …show more content…
Some of the greatest advances during the World War Two era were in the area of coded communication. The most famous code during World War Two was the Nazi’s Enigma Code. The
Enigma Machine used a series of rotors and a reflector to to change an easy to understand message into a code that took huge amounts of time to crack. The code was ultimately broken by a group of scientists led by Alan Turring. Consequently, the machine may have never been cracked if the operators had been more careful. Robert Chruchhouse (2002), an author and professor from Cambridge University explains that, “Apart from some less-than-ideal inherent characteristics of the Enigma, in practice the system's greatest weakness was the way that it was used.” Churchhouse goes on to say that, “Without these operational shortcomings, Enigma would, almost certainly, not have been broken.” Furthermore, a
Historical Perspective
World War Two is seen by many as one of the darkest times in human history. In western history the Allies won, but it could have so easily ended differently. Throughout the war, key technological advances were made and shared between allies on either side. During this short time, amazing new ideas about communication, radar and vehicles were brought to life. Surprisingly, even with all these advances, no single side had superior technology in every single aspect. In reality, it was how the technology was used, and if mistakes were made that determined the outcome of the war. Many scholars and historians have agreed that the technology on either side of the war was relatively equal. …show more content…
Some of the greatest advances during the World War Two era were in the area of coded communication. The most famous code during World War Two was the Nazi’s Enigma Code. The
Enigma Machine used a series of rotors and a reflector to to change an easy to understand message into a code that took huge amounts of time to crack. The code was ultimately broken by a group of scientists led by Alan Turring. Consequently, the machine may have never been cracked if the operators had been more careful. Robert Chruchhouse (2002), an author and professor from Cambridge University explains that, “Apart from some less-than-ideal inherent characteristics of the Enigma, in practice the system's greatest weakness was the way that it was used.” Churchhouse goes on to say that, “Without these operational shortcomings, Enigma would, almost certainly, not have been broken.” Furthermore, a