Chapter 14 "Physics in Desert Country" Summary

Robert Oppenheimer, thirty-eight in 1942, is a respected theoretician in the world of physics. He is tall and intent, his hair wispy, black and curly, with blue eyes showing depth and disarming candor. He resembles both a young Einstein and an overgrown choir boy. Oppenheimer is also self-destructive - a chain smoker with a persistent cough, ravaged teeth, and an appearance of emaciation from addition to martinis and spiced food. He is embarrassed by his body. He lived in a small apartment until marriage, when he buys an elegant house in the Berkeley hills. Women adore him. Oppenheimer's mother died of leukemia in late 1931, his father of a heart attack in 1937. These two deaths cause him to realize the extent of suffering in the world. He is furious about the treatment of Jews in...