Did you know a bunch of Norwegians on skis saved the world? It might sound like an overstatement, but the Norwegian resistance thwarted the Nazi plans to develop an atomic bomb. That relatively unknown episode of World War II, as well as the first English-language film to portray it, "The Heroes of Telemark", are the subject of today's episode.

Do you know what heavy water is and why the Nazis needed it? Do you know the connection between nuclear power and Kirk Douglas’s spectacular chin dimple? If you don’t know about either or how they can possibly be related, this is the episode for you! 

In Part 1 we discuss the race for the atomic bomb, the life of scientist and resistance fighter Leif Tronstad, and the two operations that would prepare the ground for the final sabotage.

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