The Making of the Atomic Bomb
Books | History / Military / Nuclear Warfare
4.3
(75)
Richard Rhodes
**Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and the National Book Critics Circle Award** The definitive history of nuclear weapons—from the turn-of-the-century discovery of nuclear energy to J. Robert Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project—this epic work details the science, the people, and the sociopolitical realities that led to the development of the atomic bomb.This sweeping account begins in the 19th century, with the discovery of nuclear fission, and continues to World War Two and the Americans’ race to beat Hitler’s Nazis. That competition launched the Manhattan Project and the nearly overnight construction of a vast military-industrial complex that culminated in the fateful dropping of the first bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.Reading like a character-driven suspense novel, the book introduces the players in this saga of physics, politics, and human psychology—from FDR and Einstein to the visionary scientists who pioneered quantum theory and the application of thermonuclear fission, including Planck, Szilard, Bohr, Oppenheimer, Fermi, Teller, Meitner, von Neumann, and Lawrence. From nuclear power’s earliest foreshadowing in the work of H.G. Wells to the bright glare of Trinity at Alamogordo and the arms race of the Cold War, this dread invention forever changed the course of human history, and The Making of The Atomic Bomb provides a panoramic backdrop for that story. Richard Rhodes’s ability to craft compelling biographical portraits is matched only by his rigorous scholarship. Told in rich human, political, and scientific detail that any reader can follow, The Making of the Atomic Bomb is a thought-provoking and masterful work.
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More Details:
Author
Richard Rhodes
Pages
928
Publisher
Simon and Schuster
Published Date
2012-09-18
ISBN
1439126224 9781439126226
Ratings
Google: 4
Community ReviewsSee all
"Obviously, one of the most significant books and stories ever. Truly a play by play of how the bomb was made and dropped. As a book, I found it very difficult to stay engaged. There is quite a bit of science/chemistry involved and it goes into detail as well as dozens of characters. Add to that a 700+ page book and it’s quite dense. I think a true history buff would enjoy the level of detail. I once had a boss say tell me what time it is, not how the watch was built. This book is how the watch was built. "
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