The Manhattan Project: The Birth of the Atomic Bomb by Its Creators, Eyewitnesses and Historians: The Birth of the Atomic Bomb in the Words of Its Creators, Eyewitnesses, and Historians

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In 1940, a British Government report hinted at a what would later be known as "nuclear deterrence" – an international restraint based on the threat of mutual annihilation. "It must be realised that no shelter are available that would be effective and could be used on a larger scale," noted the report in weighing responses to a Nazi bomb. "The most effective reply would be a counter-threat with a similar weapon." As Rhodes reveals, however, the United States, prodded at every step by its British allies, strove relentlessly for nuclear superiority even when Germany's defeat seemed inevitable. The ghost had indeed escaped from the bottle and there was no way to recapture him anymore. Now, it wasn't about restraining the Nazi – it was about the intoxication caused by ultimate power, about the possession of a formidable new weapon of destruction. Hitler’s 1933 expulsion of Jewish scientists from Germany’s universities and Mussolini’s anti-Semitic policies led to key talented nuclear physicists coming to the U. S. Driven by their personal experience and overwhelming fear of Hitler’s getting the bomb first, these scientists convinced the American government to take the bomb seriously. When their expertise was combined with existing U.S. scientific talent, a “critical mass” of ideas rebounded through this emergent physics community resulting in the atomic bomb. Germany’s remaining scientists, while talented, were too few, too isolated and had too few resources. Other nations had even less capability. Richard Rhodes’ big dense book is detailed, focused and all-encompassing much like the Manhattan Project and the atomic bomb it describes. Rhodes’ history is a blend of physics, politics, war, diplomacy and personal relationships. It challenges both one’s intellect and moral judgment. It raises as many questions as it answers and some of the most important still remain after almost 70 years. Badash, Lawrence (July 1987). "The men behind the bomb". Nature. 328 (6128): 301–302. doi: 10.1038/328301a0. ISSN 0028-0836.

Finishing this Pulitzer Prize winning book turned out to be quite a slog.There is way too much detail about theoretical physics and technicalities involved in making the atomic bomb.It is almost a technical manual. Robert Oppenheimer oversaw all this activity with self-evident competence and an outward composure that almost everyone came to depend on. 'Oppenheimer was probably the best lab director I have ever seen,' Teller repeats, 'because of the great mobility of his mind, because of his successful effort to know about practically everything important invented in the laboratory, and also because of his unusual psychological insight into other people which, in the company of physicists, was very much the exception.'" Rhodes does not ignore any aspect of the process. This book is a scientific history, a political history, a biography, and a technical manual. He begins in the 19th century at the advent of nuclear physics, and walks through the lives of its significant contributors. He goes into (often excrutiating) details about the development of the first nuclear reactors, the early life of Oppenheimer, and the development of the amazing military-industrial complex required to create the small amount of material needed for the three atom bombs detonated during World War II (one test unit and the two used over Japan). Rhodes makes the people involved seem human and manages to mostly avoid social commentary, merely presenting the facts as they were.

The main character in this thrilling book is an 11-year-old girl named Dewey Kerrigan. She decides to go searching for her father, a brilliant scientist who is working on a top-secret and extremely dangerous project. Dewey gets on a train and heads for Los Alamos, New Mexico. The hunt for her father will not be an easy one, and it will take some time for her to find him and discover the truth.

The information in this book contains a collection of writings, documents, statistics, and more that were written down during the Manhattan Project. Like most of the other books on this topic, the author starts at the beginning, in 1939. This is the year of the birth of the Manhattan Project. Cynthia tells the story chronologically and explains how the project eventually reached to employ around 130.000 people. Information That Was Once Secret This city, which didn’t exist before 1942, ended up with over 75,000 people living there by the end of the war. These included women who were scientists, doctors, administrators, and construction workers who operated behind the scenes to make the atomic bomb a reality. However, many didn't know what they were working on as the government didn't tell them. Most didn't even realize they were doing this to help build an atomic bomb until "Little Boy" was dropped on Hiroshima.The latter portions of the book are dominated – unsurprisingly – by the “American Prometheus” himself, Oppenheimer. He was a brilliant man in his own right, but his main contribution to the Manhattan Project was to manage the greatest collection of scientific minds perhaps ever gathered in one place. Theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer was already working on the concept of nuclear fission (along with Edward Teller and others) when he was named director of the Los Alamos Laboratory in northern New Mexico in 1943.

Most people don't realize that Oppenheimer and Einstein worked in Germany during the 1930s as scientists. They were forced to leave the country and came to the United States as the Nazis came to power. Originally written in the 1950s, this book is just as applicable as in today's world because of the continued military issues associated with them. Oppenheimer became the leader of the Manhattan project while Einstein continued his work on physics and how to make atomic energy. The Making of the Atomic Bomb is a history book rare in its excellence, marvelously combining the elements of narrative history, rigorous scholarship (including author interviews), and technical writing. Even if you were terrible in physics – and I was beyond terrible, as my high school physics teacher would mournfully agree – you will be able to understand the science behind this most controversial of all inventions. On July 26, 1945, at the Potsdam Conference in the Allied-occupied city of Potsdam, Germany, the U.S. delivered an ultimatum to Japan—surrender under the terms outlined in the Potsdam Declaration (which, among other provisions, called for the Japanese to form a new, democratic and peaceful government) or face “prompt and utter destruction.”

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The historian of science Lawrence Badash writes positively about the book, but notes Rhodes' descriptions of sketchy biographies unconvincing: "'human interest' material of questionable accuracy becomes psycho-babble", though he notes that "the book is accurate and the characters are well drawn". He concludes that "Altogether Rhodes has produced the most readable, exciting and just book to date that covers both the bomb and the preceding four decades". [4] There's some fantastic profiles of truly great scientists in this book and it's not one of those pop science or psuedo science books where every person is some quirky character described by a few flippant physical characteristics. I probably learned the most about Fermi from this book; he is an absolute giant. I came across Robert Wilson's take on Fermi in another book. Warzel, Charlie (July 20, 2023). "The Real Lesson From 'The Making of the Atomic Bomb' ". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on July 22, 2023 . Retrieved September 5, 2023. The fascinating, little-known story of how two brilliant female physicists’ groundbreaking discoveries led to the creation of the atomic bomb.