ROBERT OPPENHEIMER
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Robert Oppenheimer was born in New York, USA on the 22nd April 1904. He had a fairly privileged upbringing, and always enjoyed science. Oppenheimer studied at Harvard and it is there that he became interested in physics and became a theoretical physicist. After graduating he worked as a professor at the University of California, Berkley.
Oppenheimer was the head of the Los Alamos Lab during the Second World War. It was during his time at the Los Alamos lab that Oppenheimer was involved with the Manhattan Project which involved the development of the first nuclear weapons. It was these nuclear weapons that were used in the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. As a result of Oppenheimer’s involvement in this project, he is known as one of the ‘father’s of the atomic bomb’. |
Robert Oppenheimer
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After the war, Oppenheimer became involved with the United States Atomic Energy Commission when he took the role of chairman of the General Advisory Committee. In this position, Oppenheimer lobbied for international control of nuclear power in order to prevent its proliferation, and the risk of a nuclear arms race particularly with the Soviet Union. Oppenheimer was very opinionated and was forced out of politics after only a few years.
Following his political ousting, Oppenheimer become director of the Institute of Advanced Study in Princeton where he continued to work in physics, mainly in a teaching capacity, for many years. Oppenheimer did continue with some research and made important contributions to the modern theories of electron’s, nuclear fusion, quantum tunneling and black holes.
Despite his political opinions not being much liked, Oppenheimer will always be remembered as one of the founding fathers of American theoretical physics, and thanks to his research, our current understanding of the physical world is much improved. Oppenheimer died on the 18th February 1967.
Following his political ousting, Oppenheimer become director of the Institute of Advanced Study in Princeton where he continued to work in physics, mainly in a teaching capacity, for many years. Oppenheimer did continue with some research and made important contributions to the modern theories of electron’s, nuclear fusion, quantum tunneling and black holes.
Despite his political opinions not being much liked, Oppenheimer will always be remembered as one of the founding fathers of American theoretical physics, and thanks to his research, our current understanding of the physical world is much improved. Oppenheimer died on the 18th February 1967.