Julius Robert Oppenheimer
(1904 - 1967)
Julius Robert Oppenheimer was appointed director of the
central laboratory for bomb design and development in Los Alamos, New
Mexico, in May 1942, by General Leslie R. Groves, head of the Army
Oppenheimer recruited a highly qualified staff of
scientists by informing them of the German attempt to create an atomic bomb
and of the peacetime uses of atomic energy. His ability to mix with the
scientists for open discussions and on-the-spot directions and his ability
to apply his knowledge to new situations and theories, were components of
his leadership ability.
When the Allies succeeded in removing the threat of a
German atomic bomb by their military victories, in 1944, Oppenheimer
focused his attention on making the atom bomb to help bring a quick end to
the fighting in the Pacific. he also felt that knowledge of the possible
devastation from the bomb would force nations to work for peace in the
When the atomic bomb was finally used in Hiroshima and
Nagasaki, in 1945, Oppenheimer was exhausted and deeply troubled. He
resigned as direct of the Los Alamos project. He accepted a professorship
at Cal Tech and then in 1946, went to the University of California at
Berkeley. He found it difficult to teach as he was constantly being called
to Washington for consultation.
He left Berkeley to become the director of the Institute
for Advanced Study in Princeton. Albert Einstein was already a member of
the non-teaching faculty there. The institute attracted many postdoctoral
fellows and it succeeded pre-war Copenhagen as the world center of
Oppenheimer's prestige grew and he
became the spokesman for those who believed
that the atomic age demanded a broader understanding
of science and technology. He wrote many articles
and gave many lectures on this subject. He
was largely responsible for the tone and content
of the Acheson - Lilienthal plan which was
presented to the United Nations as a basis
of negotiation for atomic energy control.
Together with the Soviet scientists, he concluded
that international control was technically
realistic and achievable.
Oppenheimer served on many government committees that
were related to atomic energy. After the Soviets exploded their first
A-bomb, a gap developed between President Truman and his committee.
President Truman didn't accept the committee's report negating any ideas of
building thermonuclear bombs. This was never made public.
When Oppenheimer's General Advisory Committee
appointment expired in July 1952, he remained as a consultant. This was the
heyday of Senator Joseph McCarthy with his witch-hunts for communists and
he focused in on Oppenheimer, who was not a communist.
Oppenheimer's clearance was taken away. He requested and
received a secret hearing which lasted from April 12 to May 6, 1954, during
which distinguished scientists and public servants testified on his behalf
The hearing concluded that Oppenheimer's loyalty was not in question but it
would be unwise to trust him with official secrets.
Oppenheimer remained as director of the Institute for
Advanced Study in Princeton until he resigned in 1966. He died in 1967.
Oppenheimer was an outstanding Jewish physicist of the 20th century. His
development of the A-bomb and his writings and lectures on atomic energy
are a testimonial to his greatness.
Sources: This is one of the 150 illustrated
true stories of American heroism included
Heroes & Heroines of America : 150 True
Stories of American Jewish Heroism,
© 1996, written by Seymour "Sy"
Brody of Delray Beach, Florida, illustrated
by Art Seiden of Woodmere, New York, and published
by Lifetime Books, Inc., Hollywood, FL.