> It is hard to understand what the author is hand-wringing about.
The issue seems to be “Organisations party to classified information have to keep it secret regardless of whether it’s in the public domain”.
As an academic historian the author is intrigued by the diagram - was it a mistake or was it authorised as a declassified representation? Either way, the consequences would be of interest.
> It is not that nobody knows how these weapons are supposed to work.
Optimally small, lightweight, robust, safe, reliable - all sorts of engineering short-cuts or novel techniques … you don’t want to give way accidental insights about the “hows” an enemy hasn’t thought of.
The issue seems to be “Organisations party to classified information have to keep it secret regardless of whether it’s in the public domain”.
As an academic historian the author is intrigued by the diagram - was it a mistake or was it authorised as a declassified representation? Either way, the consequences would be of interest.
> It is not that nobody knows how these weapons are supposed to work.
Optimally small, lightweight, robust, safe, reliable - all sorts of engineering short-cuts or novel techniques … you don’t want to give way accidental insights about the “hows” an enemy hasn’t thought of.