The Ruin of J. Robert Oppenheimer: And the Birth of the Modern Arms RaceOn April 12, 1954, the nation was astonished to learn that scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer faced charges of violating national security. Why had the charismatic leader of the Manhattan Project— the man who led the team that developed the atomic bomb that ended World War II—been cast into overnight disgrace? In this riveting narrative, bestselling author Priscilla J. McMillan draws on newly declassified U.S. government documents and materials from Russia, as well as in-depth interviews, to present the truth about the downfall of America’s most famous scientist. McMillan re-creates the fraught years from 1949 to 1955 when Oppenheimer and a group of liberal scientists tried to head off the cabal of hard-line air force officials, anti-Communist politicians, and rival scientists—including Edward Teller—who were trying to seize control of U.S. policy and build ever more deadly nuclear weapons. The conspiracy to discredit Oppenheimer, occurring at the height of the McCarthy era and sanctioned by a misinformed President Eisenhower, was a watershed in the cold war, poisoning American politics for decades and creating dangers that haunt us today. |
Contents
Introduction I | 1 |
David Lilienthals Vacation | 17 |
The Halloween Meeting | 34 |
Copyright | |
20 other sections not shown
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
Acheson Air Force Alamos Alvarez April asked atomic bomb atomic energy atomic weapons Berkeley Bethe Blair Borden Bradbury called Carson Mark chairman Chevalier clearance commissioners committee Communist Conant David December decision defense diary Edward Teller Eisenhower February Fermi Finletter fission Françoise Ulam Garrison Gordon Dean H-bomb Hans Bethe hearing heimer Hoover hydrogen bomb I. I. Rabi idea IMJRO interview with author JCAE Joseph Volpe JRO/FBI July June Kitty knew laboratory LANL later Lawrence letter Lewis Strauss Lilienthal Los Alamos Manley March McMahon meeting memo Murphy Murphy's Murray NARA Neumann Norris Bradbury November October Oppen Oppenheimer's Oppie Oppie's Papers penheimer physicist Pitzer president Princeton Robb Robert Oppenheimer Russians scientific scientists secrecy secret secretary Smyth Souers Soviet Stanislaw Ulam Super telephone thermonuclear thought tion told tritium Truman Ulam's Volpe wanted Washington Wheeler wrote York Zuckert