Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!att!cbnews!military
From: sco!jjones@ucscc.UCSC.EDU
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Japanese "Manhattan Project" (Submission to sci.military)
Message-ID: <7449@cbnews.ATT.COM>
Date: 14 Jun 89 03:26:50 GMT
Sender: military@cbnews.ATT.COM
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Approved: military@att.att.com



From: sco!jjones@ucscc.UCSC.EDU
Some time back, I came across a reference of a Japanese "Manhattan Project"
during WWII in the book "Enola Gay," an account of the events leading up
to the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  (I do not remember the author's
name.)  Supposedly the Japanese were, like the U.S., trying to harness 
fission as a weapon.  According to the book, though, the Japanese researchers 
were trying for some kind of death ray, not a bomb.  

Is there any truth to this?  If so, does anyone have details about what
the Japanese were working on?  I haven't run across any other mention of
this anywhere.  

Feel free to post your response, but I request that you also e-mail it to me;
I don't regularly read this group.  Thanks.