In the Shadow of the Bomb by S S Schweber

In the Shadow of the Bomb by S S Schweber

Narrates how two charismatic, exceptionally talented physicists - J Robert Oppenheimer and Hans A Bethe - came to terms with the nuclear weapons they helped to create. This book tells the story of modern physics, the development of atomic weapons, and the Cold War.

An absorbing investigation of how the two physicists, each formidable in his own way, attempted to shoulder responsibility for their creationThe New Yorker There is merit to Schweber's contrasting portraits of Oppenheimer and Bethe... Trained as a physicist, Schweber is the first biographer to explain the significance of the scientific work that Oppenheimer and Bethe did--a fascinating topic in itself... -- Gregg Herken American Scientist The author of this book studied physics with J. Robert Oppenheimer and Hans Bethe. His remarkably clear account of their rise to intellectual leadership in the 1930's pulses with an insider's love. Mostly, however, S. S. Schweber writes as a historian and philosopher of science, elegantly exploring the morally fractured stories of American physicists transformed by the Cold War. -- John M. Staudenmaier The Historian In the Shadow of the Bomb is a rare example of a successful hybrid work... Schweber entwines issues of science, technology, ethics, and politics in a relatively seamless manner, bringing in each lens of analysis at the appropriate time... [He] presents a model of how to write respectfully of individuals while portraying them as fallible human beings in a complex cultural, political, intellectual, and scientific context. -- Russell Olwell Technology & Culture For a world in which scientific power must be checked by visionary words linked to prudent politics, Schweber has written a book of compelling insight. Booklist Schweber is to be commended for pulling together, with comprehensive referencing, many of the relevant events in the interlocking sagas of Oppenheimer and Bethe... Bethe is the dominant figure in this volume, and Schweber knows and describes him well. -- Sidney D. Drell Physics Today Silvan Schweber [worries] about the gap between moral ideals and moral realities among scientists who brought the Atomic Age into being and who lived with its postwar consequences... In the Shadow of the Bomb ...contrasts Bethe's exemplary conduct with Oppenheimer's moral ambiguity. -- Steven Shapin London Review of Books [A] fascinating account... [It offers] gripping accounts that capture the essence of an era through panoramic detail. -- Nicole Johnston The Globe and Mail [A] book, well footnoted and scholarly, that poses fundamental moral and ethical questions and seeks their answers through examination of the lives of Oppenheimer and Bethe. This is very much a book for current times... Choice Schweber's book ... offers intriguing insights into the creativity of [Robert Oppenheimer and Hans Bethe] and the shaping of their moral outlooks in the atomic age. How they balanced the ethical equation between uncovering truths about nature and inventing the most terrible weapons of mass destruction makes for fascinating reading. -- PD Smith The Guardian Unlimited

S. S. Schweber (1928–2017) was professor emeritus of physics and the Richard Koret Professor in the History of Ideas at Brandeis University and an associate in the Department of the History of Science at Harvard University. He was a fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His books include Einstein for the 21st Century: His Legacy in Science, Art, and Modern Culture and QED and the Men Who Made It (both Princeton).

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780691049892
ISBN 10	0691049890
Title	In the Shadow of the Bomb
Author	Silvan S Schweber
Series	Princeton Series In Physics
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Princeton University Press
Year published	2000-05-07
Number of pages	256
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.