He was fond of reading Proust and Dostoevsky. He studied the Bhagavad Gita in Sanskrit, painted landscapes in oil, and flirted with Marxism. His mannerisms -- such as saying "Gee!" when pondering some scientific marvel -- were contagious. And when the US government decided to incinerate hundreds of thousands of fishermen, housewives, cooks, potters, and Zen monks as a decisive blow for peace in 1945, he told the commanding officers on the mission, "Don't let them detonate it too high . . . or the target won't get as much damage." He was J. Robert Oppenheimer, the mild-mannered destroyer of worlds who led the Manhattan Project, portrayed in a new biography called American Prometheus.
posted by digaman on Apr 13, 2005 - 126 comments

The Civil Defense Museum. Americans are taking their personal security seriously again, but for decades the threat of nuclear annihilation was a constant presence. It seemed laughable in The Atomic Cafe, but the fears that led to fallout shelters and Bert the Turtle don't seem quite so ridiculous anymore.
posted by snarkout on Oct 23, 2001 - 11 comments