Alvin Weinberg archive opens window into Cold War nuclear science oakridger.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from oakridger.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Deeply personal writings opens rare snapshot into the mind of ORNL s Cold War era leader
The Knoxville News-Sentinel 6 hrs ago Vincent Gabrielle, Knoxville News Sentinel
Alvin Weinberg has an incredible resume, if you will.
He came to Oak Ridge in 1945 as a Manhattan Project scientist and stayed in the city until his death in 2006. He was an influential nuclear physicist and the longest-serving director of Oak Ridge National Lab, home of some of the country s most important scientific achievements. He was a scientific bridge between the use of the nuclear bomb to the importance of climate change.
But the personal stories behind the man are far, far more interesting.
Alvin Weinberg has an incredible resume, if you will.
He came to Oak Ridge in 1945 as a Manhattan Project scientist and stayed in the city until his death in 2006. He was an influential nuclear physicist and the longest-serving director of Oak Ridge National Lab, home of some of the country s most important scientific achievements. He was a scientific bridge between the use of the nuclear bomb to the importance of climate change.
But the personal stories behind the man are far, far more interesting.
His impact on science, and on scientific thinking in general, are becoming more appreciated through the digital publication of his voluminous handwritten letters. They not only get into the nitty-gritty of nuclear science and Oak Ridge, they expose the deeply philosophical conversations Weinberg was having about the power and danger of nuclear energy in the years after the Oak Ridge-developed bomb dropped on Japan to end World War II.
Carolyn Krause/Special to The Oak Ridger
“A Tribute to Alvin Weinberg,” including information on the new online database of his scientific publications and other documents, will be presented virtually to the public from 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 20 (Weinberg’s birth anniversary).
The presentation, via Zoom, is sponsored by the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge and Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
“The purpose of this public online event is to honor Alvin Weinberg’s legacy and to celebrate the preservation and digitization of his papers,” said Rhonda Bogard, who led the digitization of the papers, most of which were initially donated to the Children’s Museum in 1986.
Oak Ridge Today
Posted at “A Tribute to Alvin Weinberg,” including information on the new online database of his scientific publications and other documents, will be presented virtually to the public from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m., on Tuesday, April 20 (Weinberg’s birth anniversary). The presentation, via Zoom, is sponsored by the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge and Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. “The purpose of this public online event is to honor Alvin Weinberg’s legacy and to celebrate the preservation and digitization of his papers,” said Rhonda Bogard, who led the digitization of the papers, most of which were initially donated to the Children’s Museum in 1986.