J. Robert Oppenheimer is credited with the creation of the atomic bomb. But, "The country asked him to do something and he did it brilliantly, and they repaid him for the tremendous job he did by breaking him." This documentary traces the life of this brilliant nuclear physicist to his humiliation for doing a task that he was asked to do. [2:00:00]

A page provided by the Brookings Institution which lists 50 "facts" about U.S. Nuclear Weapons. Good place to start for basic (and sometimes interesting) statistics. (Published April 28, 2014)

Detailed background information and a collection of resources are provided to help one understand the history of the bombings of Hiroshima & Nagasaki. Material consists of original texts, eyewitness accounts, photographs, videos, and color maps. A very informative site.

At age twenty-seven, physicist Philip Morrison joined the Manhattan Project, the code name given to the U.S. government's covert effort at Los Alamos to develop the first nuclear weapon. The Manhattan Project was also the most expensive single program ever financed by public funds. In this video segment, Morrison describes the charismatic leadership of his mentor, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and the urgency of their mission to manufacture a weapon 'which if we didn't make first would lead to the loss of the war." In the interview Morrison conducted for War and Peace in the Nuclear Age: 'Dawn,' he describes the remote, inaccessible setting of the laboratory that operated in extreme secrecy. It was this physical isolation, he maintains, that allowed scientists extraordinary freedom to exchange ideas with fellow physicists. Morrison also reflects on his wartime fears. Germany had many of the greatest minds in physics and engineering, which created tremendous anxiety among Allied scientists that it would win the atomic race and the war, and Morrison recalls the elaborate schemes he devised to determine that country's atomic progress. At the time that he was helping assemble the world's first atomic bomb, Morrison believed that nuclear weapons 'could be made part of the construction of the peace.' A month after the war, he toured Hiroshima, and for several years thereafter he testified, became a public spokesman, and lobbied for international nuclear cooperation. After leaving Los Alamos, Morrison returned to academia. For the rest of his life he was a forceful voice against nuclear weapons.

A wonderful PBS biography of a great man. This contains many personal touches, yet does a fine job of describing Bohr's scientific work. But it's best at Bohr the man. Nice quotes, one in the middle, one at the end.

In-depth analysis of the decision to create and drop the atomic bomb on Japan during World War II. Includes details on the Interim Committee.

U.S. History is designed to meet the scope and sequence requirements of most introductory courses. The text provides a balanced approach to U.S. history, considering the people, events, and ideas that have shaped the United States from both the top down (politics, economics, diplomacy) and bottom up (eyewitness accounts, lived experience). U.S. History covers key forces that form the American experience, with particular attention to issues of race, class, and gender.Senior Contributing AuthorsP. Scott Corbett, Ventura CollegeVolker Janssen, California State University, FullertonJohn M. Lund, Keene State CollegeTodd Pfannestiel, Clarion UniversityPaul Vickery, Oral Roberts UniversitySylvie Waskiewicz

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

Discuss the strategy employed against the Japanese and some of the significant battles of the Pacific campaign
Describe the effects of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Analyze the decision to drop atomic bombs on Japan