Genius in the shadows

Abstract

This book is a well-researched, anecdote-rich biography of Leo Szilard, the inventive Hungarian physicist who pressed Einstein in 1939 to alert President Roosevelt to the possible wartime uses of atomic energy. Withdrawing from nuclear physics after the bombing of Hiroshima, Szilard studied biology, advocated international arms control, and wrote, among other things, [open quotes]The Voice of the Dolphins[close quotes], a utopian novel offering his ideas for reducing Cold War tensions. Based on research in the Leo Szilard papers, extensive interviews with Szilard's colleagues and friends, and on material and recollections provided by Szilard's younger brother, Bela Szilard, the book offers a detailed picture of the physicist. The book provides a record of Szilard's life before 1939 and a thorough, readable account of a significant historical figure.