The Effects of Nuclear War
book
The Effects of Nuclear War is a 1978 book commissioned by the United States Office of Technology Assessment to support civilian preparation for nuclear warfare. The book argued that the social effects of a nuclear attack would be unpredictable, and also, that the welfare of society would worsen for years after the attack.
"Charlottesville: A Fictional Account"
An essay, written by Nan Randall, entitled "Charlottesville: A Fictional Account", presented a nonfiction-style description of the catastrophic indirect effects of a nuclear attack on Charlottesville, Virginia following a nuclear attack on Washington DC. In the near term, the US, the government of which still exists, faces an uncertain future.
"Charlottesville" came to be popular on its own, separated from the full government report. It was an inspiration for the 1983 TV movie, The Day After. The story is in the public domain.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “The Effects of Nuclear War” is book. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Effects, Nuclear and book, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “book” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jan 29, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q108009081. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1978 and 1983.
Later fame can flatten the distinction between original context, subsequent adaptation and institutional collecting history. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.
- Identifying works and editions
- Tracing reception history
- Finding collection records
The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “The Effects of Nuclear War”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow The Effects of Nuclear War primary sources, The Effects of Nuclear War archive and Effects research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “The Effects of Nuclear War”?
- Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
- Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “The Effects of Nuclear War” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.