Memoirs - (Twentieth Century Journey in Science and Politics) by Edward Teller (Paperback)

About the Book

The story of Edward Teller is the story of the 20th century. Born in Hungary in 1908, Teller witnessed the rise of Nazism and anti-Semitism, two world wars, the McCarthy era, and the changing face of big science. A brilliant and controversial figure, Teller brings to these events a perspective that is at once surprising and insightful.

Book Synopsis

Edward Teller is perhaps best known for his belief in freedom through strong defense. But this extraordinary memoir at last reveals the man behind the headlines--passionate and humorous, devoted and loyal. Never before has Teller told his story as fully as he does here. We learn his true position on everything from the bombing of Japan to the pursuit of weapons research in the post-war years. In clear and compelling prose, Teller chronicles the people and events that shaped him as a scientist, beginning with his early love of music and math, and continuing with his study of quantum physics under Werner Heisenberg. He also describes his relationships with some of the century's greatest minds--Einstein, Bohr, Fermi, Szilard, von Neumann--and offers an honest assessment of the development of the atomic and hydrogen bombs, the founding of Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, and his complicated relationship with J. Robert Oppenheimer. Rich and humanizing, this candid memoir describes the events that led Edward Teller to be honored or abhorred, and provides a fascinating perspective on the ability of a single individual to affect the course of history.

About the Author

Edward Teller is one of the most celebrated and controversial physicists alive today. Through his work at Los Alamos and his development of the hydrogen bomb, he helped usher in the atomic age. He is currently Director Emeritus of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and continues as a Senior Research Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution.

Judith Shoolery is a former science teacher who has worked as a writer and editor on a variety of publications, most recently as a book editor at the Hoover Institution. Now retired, she and her husband live in Half Moon Bay, California.