the fantastic oppenheimer premieres in just a few days (Thursday 20) and as surely after seeing it, you want to know more about the figure of the physicist J Robert Oppenheimer or on one’s own atomic bomb, we want to go ahead and propose some titles that you will surely like to read. Take note.
They say it’s one of the great movies of the year. And it is that having the director Christopher Nolan behind the camera is usually a guarantee of success, together with an exceptional cast (with Cillian Murphy, Florence Pugh, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon and Robert Downey Jr., among others) and at least one theme controversial: the creation of the first atomic bomb.
So that you can investigate a little more about this story, we have compiled 5 books that might interest you once you go to the cinema to see the movie.
American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy by J. Robert Oppenheimer
J. Robert Oppenheimer will always be linked to the creation of the first atomic bomb, so it is only fair to start with him. This book tells the biographical story of this physicist, obsessed with fighting against his own creation after verifying its destructive power. Oppenheimer’s life was pretty tough from then on, something you’ll be able to delve into in this title from Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin.
Secret history of the atomic bomb: How they came to build a weapon that was not needed
The historian Peter Watson makes a long review of the beginnings of the construction of the nuclear weapon, kept awake declassified documents in recent years in which it is clear that very few really wanted to develop it and that its justification for ending the Second World War is biased and overvalued.
Oppenheimer and the atomic bomb
One more analysis of what this historical moment meant under the magnifying glass of the popular science collection “Scientists and their discoveries”. In this short book (barely 102 pages) he discusses and explains how the Manhattan project was and the race to create the first atomic bomb and what moral dilemmas Oppenheimer had to face, among other issues, in addition to analyzing the importance and implications it has had for the 20th century and the future.
Oppenheimer and the atomic bomb: In 90 minutes
This short book (it only has 112 pages) also reviews one of the most decisive and controversial moments in the history of humanity. Paul Strathern is in charge of offering a clear and quite accessible explanation how the atomic bomb was developed, its great importance in the historical context in which it happened and the implications that its creation has had since then until today.
The atomic bomb.: The human factor in World War II
Behind the creation of the atomic bomb in the context of World War II, there is a complex sociopolitical framework that led to its approval and green light. That is exactly what this book written by Natividad Carpintero Santamaría investigates, in which you will also find personal testimonials of various scientists who were involved in the project in one way or another.