 With the United States at war , Young took a job in 1942 as a scientific librarian with the Office of Scientific Research and Development ( OSRD ) at the University of Chicago 's Toxicity Laboratory , compiling American , British and Canadian reports on chemical warfare , and preparing an index of toxic chemicals . In 1945 , she transferred to the Manhattan Project 's Metallurgical Laboratory as a chemist . There she edited papers that would later be published by the Atomic Energy Commission as part of its National Nuclear Energy Series . She later served on the editorial board of the National Nuclear Energy Series , representing the Argonne National Laboratory . 
