I'd question how much of a necessity it is to refute the need for a "Manhattan Project" for various things is. But having heard the same call myself, I'll add m

I'd question how much of a necessity it is to refute the need for a "Manhattan Project" for various things is. But having heard the same call myself, I'll add my two cents to what I think is a rather good essay. There's a perception among those calls I gather that the Manhattan Project was pulled together as this massive undertaking at the stroke of a pen. The reality however, was that it started off as overlooked, modest, and aimless at times. Overtime, as the goals and necessities became more clear, it grew and matured into the massive, focused effort we all know. But it was because of the direction and need that developed that resulted in the Project, not the other way around. And I think that's a very important distinction. I think great projects tend to owe a good amount of their growth to organic factors. The reason why we haven't seen a "Manhattan Project" to solve a societal issue is because the conditions are not necessary right for one, and perhaps more importantly, the "project" needed to tackle one might not necessarily be recognizable to us as such.