This week in C-SPAN's Lectures and History podcast feed, historian Garrick Graff discusses

his new oral history book, The Devil Reach Toward the Sky. It's about the development of the

atomic bomb in 1945. August 2025 marks 80 years since the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Graff's book weaves together the voices of well-known figures like Robert Oppenheimer and Edward Teller, alongside a diverse

range of others who witnessed the bomb's creation and deployment firsthand. A note to our listeners,

with the academic year now wrapped, lectures in history will pause new episodes until September.

Over the summer, we'll revisit some of our most engaging past lectures and other history-focused content.

This episode was recorded for American History TV. More in a moment.

Who first showed you democracy in action? A teacher, neighbor, community leader? Mine was my middle school social studies teacher, Mrs. Carlson.

Honor that person and help power C-SPAN's America 250, an 18-month ad-free celebration of our nation's story.

Give $25 or more by August 31st at c-span.org slash donate to add your democracy hero to our online wall. We'll thank you with

a democracy unfiltered decal. Your gift keeps these stories alive. Donate today at c-span.org

slash donate. Thank you. Now today, July 16th marks the 80th anniversary since the first ever

detonation of a nuclear device when the

United States conducted the Trinity test in the New Mexico desert.

The test was part of a top secret mission under the Army Corps of Engineers, the Manhattan

Engineer District, today known as the Manhattan Project.

Now the Trinity Test unleashed a new era of warfare

and, of course, global politics to go along with it, with the use of the atomic bombs against

Hiroshima and Nagasaki that'll help bring about the end of World War II, but open the door

to the nuclear age and, of course, to the Cold War.

Now, tonight we're excited to have Garrett Graff with us to discuss his latest title,

...