The Making of the Atomic Bomb

Groves needs someone to direct the bomb project; he makes a daring choice in Oppenheimer. The scientist, outstandingly brilliant with a knack for getting to the heart of problems, showed leadership over the previous year, having toned down some of his arrogance. Bush and Groves agree that Oppenheimer’s communist sympathies are a drawback, but “Security questions would have to wait” (449). The next problem is a location for the new laboratory. For security reasons, Groves wants it well away from populated areas. They settle on a mesa high in the forested mountains of New Mexico north of Santa Fe. The government buys out the private boys’ school there, named Los Alamos, and quickly constructs a mini-town of the same name for the scientists and their families, including housing, schools, recreational facilities, and a cantina. A laboratory goes up, surrounded by a barbed-wire fence; lab equipment is borrowed from various universities to help fill it.

Oppenheimer recruits scientists, telling them their lives will be highly restricted but the cause worth it; most sign on, including Bethe, Teller, Segrè, Fermi, and Isidor Rabi. However, most scientists balk at being forced to join the Army, citing the importance of independence and collegiality in their work; Groves backs down.