german july march german american nuclear physicist addition making important contributions quantum solid state physics won nobel prize physics work theory stellar career professor world war head secret laboratory developed atomic bombs played key role calculating critical mass weapons developing theory method trinity test fat man weapon dropped nagasaki august war played important role development hydrogen bomb originally joined project hope proving later campaigned nuclear testing nuclear arms race helped persuade kennedy nixon sign respectively partial nuclear test ban treaty anti missile treaty salt scientific research ceased publishing papers making scientists published major paper field decade career case spanned nearly seventy years students called supreme problem 20th century early years born germany july child anna née physiology mother daughter professor jewish raised protestant like father despite having religious background religious later life described father accepted position professor director family moved director apartment institute initially privately professional teacher group girls boys family moved father head new main attended frankfurt germany education interrupted contracted tuberculosis sent bad recovered sufficiently attend local following year sent private boarding school attended gymnasium final years secondary schooling having passed entered decided major chemistry instruction physics poor distinguished frankfurt like disliked approaches presented mathematics reference sciences found poor destroyed lab coat acid found advanced physics taught associate professor interesting left replaced advised university better school theoretical physics specifically study entered april took student recommendation taught advanced course differential physics enjoyed renowned scholar frequently received advance copies scientific papers discussion weekly evening arrived received papers wave mechanics phd thesis suggested examine electron crystals starting point suggested paper ray crystals later recalled ambitious pursuit greater accuracy calculations complicated met time told tales expected better thesis guess later recalled compliment early work received doctorate offered frankfurt september moved father recently divorced mother father met earlier year married children born born find work frankfurt accepted offer wrote considered greatest paper theory passage fast rays matter starting interpretation equation produced simplified formula collision problems transform known today formula submitted paper recommended foundation travelling scholarship provided month dollars study abroad chose work university_of_cambridge england worked supervision request working cloud chambers created version formula known sense humor research created hoax paper calculated fine structure constant absolute zero temperature units causing scandal scientific world paper fun certain class papers theoretical physics day purely speculative based numerical arguments attempts explain value fine structure constant fundamental quantities earlier paper forced issue apology second half scholarship chose laboratory rome february greatly impressed regretted gone rome developed method finding exact solutions certain dimensional quantum body models influenced simplicity approaching problems qualities influenced later research offered extension fellowship allowing return italy meantime worked munich fluent english supervise english speaking including accepted request write article der quantum mechanics hydrogen reviewing article decades later noted unusual depth breadth treatment subject required little edition asked help article metals article covered basis called solid state physics took new field provided clear coherent complete coverage work articles occupied time rome wrote paper new field quantum describing interactions charged particles accepted appointment assistant professor professor experimental physics laws passed new government law restoration jewish background dismissed job university government post refused help immediately gave fellowship munich spent summer term finding places jewish students colleagues left germany moving england receiving offer position lecturer year connection moved friend wife fellow german physicist barred academic positions germany parents jewish meant speak german eat english food relationship professional personal aroused interest nuclear physics discovered challenged come theoretical explanation phenomenon hour train ride cambridge manchester investigate years ahead physics department looking new theoretical physicist strongly recommended supported visiting time august offered position acting assistant professor accepted fellowship year work semester agreed let start spring leaving united_states visited copenhagen september proposed accepted match opposed mother want marrying jewish girl broke engagement days wedding date december united_states arrived united_states february joined faculty salary appointment deliberate effort new head physics department nuclear physics hired worked build complete team needed advice recruited received requests visit columbia_university princeton_university harvard_university moved prevent having appointed regular assistant professor assurance promotion professor soon follow published series articles summarized known subject nuclear physics time account informally known bible remained standard work subject years account continued left filling gaps older literature offered matched offer salary wrote mother leading america mean best certainly better probably good talk counts march attended fourth annual invited attendees included initially declined invitation attend conference topic stellar energy generation interest persuaded come conference detailed known temperature density chemical composition sun challenged come explanation proposed paper sun energy result chain reaction account observation elements heavier end conference working collaboration come series subsequent nuclear reactions explained sun shines explain processes heavier stars overlooked time doubts cycle described processes sun recent measurements sun core temperature returned studied relevant nuclear reactions reaction cross sections leading discovery carbon nitrogen oxygen cycle cycle papers cycle authored carbon oxygen nitrogen cycle sent publication mother afraid remain germany taking advantage origin able united_states june french german graduate student noted offering prize best unpublished paper topic solar stellar energy need release mother furniture withdrew cycle paper sent won prize gave fee release mother furniture paper subsequently published march breakthrough understanding stars win nobel prize physics age sent note use solar observations cycle accounts sun energy observations started experiment based calculations encouragement led davis receiving share nobel prize married daughter september simple civil ceremony children henry henry contract bridge expert husband citizen united_states march writing home america germany born germany mistake came true homeland manhattan_project second world war began wanted contribute war effort unable work classified projects citizen following advice collaborated friend theory shock waves generated passage gas considered influential papers worked theory armor penetration immediately classified army making inaccessible american citizen time receiving security clearance december joined invented hole directional microwave radar sets chicago june july participated series meetings invitation discussed designs atomic bomb went preliminary calculations discussed possibilities raised prospect device super bomb point asked nitrogen atmosphere set fell perform calculations prove occur bomb later recalled germans presumably charge forming secret weapons design laboratory appointed director theoretical division laboratory smallest prestigious division equally qualified difficult manage job series disagreements february june relative priority super research led group removed division placed directly september new division work included calculating critical mass efficiency nuclear exploding atomic bomb developed formula calculating bomb explosive yield august laboratory reorganized solve problem bomb spent time studying aspects job continued worked later radiation propagation exploding atomic bomb trinity nuclear test accuracy division results detonated new_mexico desert july immediate concern efficient operation moral implications reported commented philosopher hydrogen bomb war argued crash project hydrogen bomb attempted president announced beginning project outbreak korean war signed played key role weapon development project end hoped impossible create hydrogen bomb later remark apparent contradiction stance having opposed development weapon later helping create months korean war broken time saw direct confrontation communists disturbing cold war looked hot knew reverse earlier position work bomb somebody thought force agreed join developing bomb logical wish consistent role project relation dispute responsible design later said bomb reporters started father bomb sake history think precise father provided seed mother remained child guess testified behalf security hearing specifically argued developing hydrogen bomb late 1940s hindered actual development topic seen key factor hearing contended developments led successful design matter question manpower logical development previously existing ideas hearing wife tried hard convince agree testimony played major role security clearance good terms years conflict manhattan_project especially episode permanently marred relationship later work lamb shift war ended returned june participated shelter island conference sponsored held new_york conference foundations quantum mechanics major physics conference held war chance american come pick left war establish direction post war research major talking point conference discovery graduate student shortly conference began possible quantum states hydrogen slightly energy predicted theory known lamb shift suggested result quantum fluctuations electromagnetic field pre war quantum gave absurd infinite values lamb shift showed real finite proposed solution knew calculation managed work train new_york arrived value extremely close obtained lamb realising non process greatly simplified calculations paper published august pages long contained mathematical enormously influential hitherto assumed meant fundamentally flawed new radical theory required demonstrated necessary famous papers wrote paper added consulting knowing mind wishes apparently reflection sense humor wanting paper title sound like letters greek alphabet reviewers saw manuscript struck words believed atomic nucleus like quantum liquid drop investigated nuclear matter problem considering work theory working produced solution case infinite hard core potential working came converted scattering equation easily solved differential equation led equation approach body scattering techniques examine stars similar continued research stars black holes problems theoretical late collaborated brown proposed collaborate reasonably understood time calculations problem techniques decades working nuclear physics experience calculations involving nuclear explosions tackled problems involved stellar collapse way factors affected explosion able reduce problem set differential solve age wrote important article solar problem helped establish conversion mechanism electron proposed explain theory experiment argued physics standard model required understand solar problem assumed mass effect required occur hoped evidence found ontario canada birthday june nearly approached laser wave observatory designed detect waves merging stars black holes good calculating things seen look year old quickly soon began required calculations result paper evolution compact objects merge brown regarded best produced political physicist published article criticising detail anti defense system proposed described article nearly measure taken easily thwarted deployment relatively simple primary voices scientific community signing partial test ban treaty prohibiting atmospheric testing nuclear weapons 1980s 1990s campaigned peaceful use nuclear energy disaster committee experts analysed incident concluded suffered fundamentally faulty design human error significantly contributed accident colleagues established explained disaster tells deficiencies soviet political administrative system problems nuclear power life remained strong advocate electricity nuclear energy described necessity merely option 1980s opposed strategic defense initiative missile system conceived ronald_reagan administration age wrote open letter calling scientists cease working aspect nuclear weapons development manufacture joined nobel signing letter endorsing president united_states restore science appropriate place government wrote died long time friend assumed mantle scientist conscience country like jefferson adams live new century colleagues shape personal life included passion stamp collecting loved outdoors enthusiastic life exploring alps died home new_york march heart failure survived wife rose children time death anderson emeritus professor physics emeritus honors awards received numerous honors awards lifetime fellow year received henry medal awarded max medal franklin medal medal prize nobel prize physics medal sciences posthumously elected foreign member gave lecture mechanism named new residential colleges named distinguished member faculty 4th washington home longtime board member germany discovered named selected publications theory high frequency crystals mit predecessor agency october theoretical estimate maximum possible nuclear explosion predecessor agency january body problem nuclear matter predecessor agency strong electromagnetic field predecessor agency september principle scattering predecessor agency october fusion hybrid august
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