Ukranian-born,
American Chemist, Noted For his contributions to The Manhattan
Project
Good
Content Typed Letter Signed
on
the Manhattan Project
"I
was so extensively involved [with the Manhattan Project]
that
it would be impossible in a letter to make
a
meaningful contribution... on my involvement in Los Alamos."
SOLD
George Bogdan Kistiakowsky
(1900-1982). Ukranian-born,
American Chemist. Very Good Typed Letter Signed referencing
his role in the Manhattan Project, one page, quarto, on Harvard
Unirveristy Letterhead, d. July 8, 1976. Reads in part: "Your
letter... about the Manhattan District [aka Project] is at hand...
I was so extensively involved [with the Manhattan Project]
that it would be impossible in a letter to make a meaningful
contribution... on my involvement in Los Alamos... Sincerely
yours, G.B. Kistiakowsky".
Born in Kiev, Ukraine, Kistiakowsky
joined the infantry and tank corps of the White Army in 1917.
When the Bolsheviks assumed power in Russia, he spent a year
in concentration camps in Turkey and the Balkans, then fled to
Germany. He studied physical chemistry at the University of Berlin,
earning his doctorate in 1925. The following year Kistiakowsky
came to the United States, where he taught at Princeton for two
years. He joined the faculty at Harvard University in 1930. While
teaching at Harvard, Kistiakowsky applied his expertise in thermodynamics,
spectroscopy, and chemical kinetics to military research, corporate
consulting, and political advising.
During World War II, Kistiakowsky
served as chief of the National Defense Research Committee's
Explosives Division. In January 1944, Kistiakowsky joined the
Manhattan Project, replacing Seth Neddermeyer as head of the
implosion program. He oversaw 600 people on the development of
a triggering device to detonate the atomic bomb-explosive lenses
that uniformly compress the plutonium sphere to achieve critical
mass. Kistiakowsky returned to Harvard at the end of World War
II and divided his time between teaching and advising several
US administrations on arms control and foreign policy.
He became increasingly doubtful
about the possibility of changing politics from within the administrative
channels in Washington. In 1968, Kistiakowsky severed his connections
with the Pentagon to protest US involvement in Vietnam. After
retiring from Harvard as professor emeritus in 1972, Kistiakowsky
became even more involved in political activism in the areas
of de-escalating the arms race and banning nuclear weapons. In
1977, he assumed the chairmanship of the Council for Livable
World, campaigning to de-escalate the arms race and reorient
the domestic political agenda.
A very good letter offering
meaningful insight into Kistiakowsky's role in the Manhattan
Project. Letter shows normal aging and handling, cross-fold,
other wise, fine.
$OLD
The History Buff
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