september american physicist diplomat played number key roles early development nuclear energy participant manhattan_project member ambassador educated princeton_university university_of_cambridge faculty member princeton chaired department early research gases interests shifted nuclear physics beginning mid-1930s world war member section consultant manhattan_project wrote manhattan_project public official history came known argued unsuccessfully crash course develop hydrogen bomb favor international control nuclear weapons sole member commission vote stripping security clearance ambassador played important role realization nuclear non treaty received peace award distinguished honor award award nuclear recipient named honor personal life born clinton new_york professor geology president princeton_university convinced join faculty princeton family moved princeton new_jersey elder brother attended primary secondary schools henry elder brother received undergraduate master degrees princeton chemistry earned harvard_university like henry father faculty member princeton brothers served world war manhattan_project married june member democratic_party education princeton attended miss fine school later princeton day school graduating entered princeton_university received classical education graduated class elected beta remained princeton graduate work graduate students earned master degree physics princeton respectively studying awarded fellowship joined university_of_cambridge studied earned second cambridge affiliated formed friendship soviet physicist win nobel prize physics work briefly soviet atomic bomb project early career world war worked proving ground earning second returned princeton year fellowship early years princeton faculty lived west main campus appointed instructor assistant professor associate professor professor chairman position held fellow studied molecules particularly carbon dioxide early research focusing gases impact means study gases critical energy levels published research article nitrogen gas basis article described method determining energy rays demonstrated method mercury following year method study nitrogen published hydrogen carbon dioxide nitrogen dioxide water dioxide carbon wrote published papers established leading field completed princeton working rays search element mid-1930s began shift interest nuclear physics inspired discovery splitting invention research articles concerned detection hydrogen appointment department chair forced devote time administrative work expense research department chair built princeton member physics responded media criticism basic science research useless suggesting seemingly useless research turn useful later world war world war involved helping united_states build atomic bomb member section charged producing material bomb proposed electromagnetic methods large samples project oversaw nuclear related project consultant manhattan_project built tested weapon associate director contributed manhattan_project headed research heavy water remained chairman princeton physics department war attendant obligations forced participate actively project later stages august general director manhattan_project appointed charged proposing government policy research development atomic energy war committee recommended national commission modeled fund oversee continued production fundamental research government laboratories universities private sector advocated comprehensive report released public following weapon use civilian director oversaw agreed selected write report following recommendation chairman granted unlimited access usual security minded insistence wrote known office later report released press august days attacks hiroshima nagasaki print copies meet demand persuaded director print end press fiscal year printed copies held copyright work prevent claiming permitted widespread reproduction essentially releasing public domain later reported financial balance minus dollars copyright fee report called semi technical report hoped men science country use help fellow citizens reaching wise decisions new atomic age urging superiors removed discussions bomb moral implications creators argues academic background report security driven focus physics expense engineering caused promote public perception manhattan_project primarily achievement postwar following war returned time duties princeton continued chair named joseph henry professor physics time spoke wrote regularly nuclear energy science policy worked expand physics department early physicist stepped chairman wanted physicist replace ultimately recommended position president nominated later year prompting resign chairman old colleague took post commission scientist spent weeks position attending hearings led senator hearings small alleged later condemned hearings grounded work nuclear scientists following soviet_union successful nuclear test august considering crash course develop hydrogen bomb member general chaired recommended unanimously course commissioners agree urged endorse international control nuclear weapons decided instead authorize hydrogen bomb program autobiography princeton colleague recalled recruited ivy mike hydrogen bomb project expressed support project response soviet test served principal advisors president preparing peace speech united_nations traces origins speech considering security clearance suspicion communist scientist commission despite personal dislike pressure commission new chairman sole commissioner vote stripping clearance june resigned september year frustration said treatment wrong history erased regret great work country returned princeton served high level administrative committees work included advising construction particle built jointly overseeing chaired committee chose succeed president princeton served consultant nuclear power congress private industry retired princeton fellow served vice president president elected member representative president appointed representative united_states position rank ambassador assumed position june following confirmation shared organization stated goal developing nuclear technology peaceful purposes helped develop later called unprecedented atmosphere played crucial role adoption nuclear non treaty retired august september assistant secretary state appointed chair committee review policy committee report affirmed importance civilian uses nuclear energy cleveland tapped time adviser position advocated transfer national nuclear december elected chairman tenure signed contract government construct operate later known construction began research programs planned stepped chairman remained board served board inc operated received peace award distinguished honor award recipient award nuclear given jointly award given named nuclear statesman award later life legacy retiring remained active 40th anniversary trinity test denounced president ronald_reagan strategic defense initiative called joint arms reductions united_states soviet_union died september princeton cause cardiac arrest long battled cancer endowed chair sitting professor physics
Henry DeWolf Smyth