This work investigates how the professional and personal identities of early nuclear engineers were constructed and transformed by their involvement in the Manhattan Project and subsequent national nuclear programs. Sean F. Johnston, a historian of science and technology, utilizes archival records and biographical data to examine the shifting public and self-perception of atomic experts in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. The book argues that these identities were not static but were continuously negotiated through the lens of Cold War politics, institutional pressures, and the psychological impact of major nuclear accidents.

Scholars in the history of technology frequently cite this text for its nuanced approach to the sociology of the nuclear profession. Readers often note the academic density of the prose, which is well-suited for researchers and students of science policy.