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Martians of Science: Five Physicists Who Changed the Twentieth Century
If science has the equivalent of a Bloomsbury group, it is the five men born at the turn of the twentieth century in Theodore von Kármán, Leo Szilard, Eugene Wigner, John von Neumann, and Edward Teller. From Hungary to Germany to the United States, they remained friends and continued to work together and influence each other throughout their lives. As a result, their work was integral to some of the most important scientific and political developments of the twentieth century.
István Hargittai tells the story of this remarkable Wigner won a Nobel Prize in theoretical physics; Szilard was the first to see that a chain reaction based on neutrons was possible, initiated the Manhattan Project, but left physics to try to restrict nuclear arms; von Neumann could solve difficult problems in his head and developed the modern computer for more complex problems; von Kármán became the first director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, providing the scientific basis for the U.S. Air Force; and Teller was the father of the hydrogen bomb, whose name is now synonymous with the controversial "Star Wars" initiative of the 1980s. Each was fiercely opinionated, politically active, and fought against all forms of totalitarianism.
Hargittai, as a young Hungarian physical chemist, was able to get to know some of these great men in their later years, and the depth of information and human interest in The Martians of Science is the result of his personal relationships with the subjects, their families, and their contemporaries.
István Hargittai tells the story of this remarkable Wigner won a Nobel Prize in theoretical physics; Szilard was the first to see that a chain reaction based on neutrons was possible, initiated the Manhattan Project, but left physics to try to restrict nuclear arms; von Neumann could solve difficult problems in his head and developed the modern computer for more complex problems; von Kármán became the first director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, providing the scientific basis for the U.S. Air Force; and Teller was the father of the hydrogen bomb, whose name is now synonymous with the controversial "Star Wars" initiative of the 1980s. Each was fiercely opinionated, politically active, and fought against all forms of totalitarianism.
Hargittai, as a young Hungarian physical chemist, was able to get to know some of these great men in their later years, and the depth of information and human interest in The Martians of Science is the result of his personal relationships with the subjects, their families, and their contemporaries.
313 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
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About the author
István Hargittai
80 books6 followersIstvan Hargittai is a University Professor at the Institute of General and Analytical Chemistry, Budapest Technical University. He is also a Research Professor and Head of Department at the Structural Chemistry Research Group of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences at Eötvös University, and is a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and the Academia Europaea (London).
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 8 reviews
March 31, 2021
Teller also said "von Neumann would carry on a conversation with my
3-year-old son, and the two of them would talk as equals, and I
sometimes wondered if he used the same principle when he talked to the
rest of us.
3-year-old son, and the two of them would talk as equals, and I
sometimes wondered if he used the same principle when he talked to the
rest of us.
June 5, 2013
Does not seem too unified a book -- more like five biographies loosely tied together. Was mostly interested in von Neumann (and hence skimmed a few parts), but the others are very fascinating individuals as well. Informative, and may serve as a good reference for these group of extraordinary people. As a book, it somewhat fails to capture the excitement of the era, though certain sections, notably the speculative history, were interesting.
Still, the memory of these five individuals seems to be fading these days, and curiously there are not many authoritative English-language works about them. I believe they are still held in high esteem in Hungary but for some reason not so much in America, which is somewhat odd as all of them lived in the USA for most of their productive lives.
Still, the memory of these five individuals seems to be fading these days, and curiously there are not many authoritative English-language works about them. I believe they are still held in high esteem in Hungary but for some reason not so much in America, which is somewhat odd as all of them lived in the USA for most of their productive lives.
May 22, 2023
This book delivers the fascinating and essential 20th Century story of five Hungarian scientists (humorously referred to as "Martians"), who received their PhDs in Germany at or shortly after WWI. The rise of the Nazis led all five to leave Europe for USA. In varying degrees all played crucial roles in Allied defense research and weapons development during WWII and into the Cold War. Some, like von Neumann and Teller, have become quite well known. Wigner received a Nobel in a physics in 1963. Szilard is probably best known for discovering the nuclear chain reaction and his recognition of its military implications. This resulted in his delegation to Einstein whose 1939 letter to Roosevelt precipitated the Manhattan Project. All played integral roles in the creation of atomic weaponry originally motivated by fear of Hitler. Later, Teller helped guide US hydrogen bomb development. Among his accomplishments, von Neumann was a pioneer in computer science, and this work was instrumental to the calculations required for the design of the atomic and hydrogen bombs.
The lives of all seem improbable in retrospect. All had Jewish heritage and, as the author points out, it is unlikely they would have survived the Holocaust had they remained in Hungary or Germany through WWII. Their brilliance gave them a chance. And they exploited their opportunities. All became devoted to the USA, and valued the intellectual and political freedom afforded them there. All achieved great influence - from von Neumann's appointment to Princeton's Center for Advanced Studies to von Karman's leading role in the aviation industry and rocketry to Teller's influence in national defense, particularly in the Reagan years.
The book's narrative is sometimes a bit labored and bytimes its structure seems more like a science paper than popular history. And yet, it is readable and offers a unique perspective on its times. The details of the Manhattan Project alone are illuminating and left me with a new perspective.
The ending is insightful and astute. The author notes that one would expect all scientific discoveries to be made eventually - for example, relativity would have been explored by another at a later time if Einstein had not done so. He follows this line of thought with a comment by Michael Polanyi about Szilard that could apply to all the Martians (or almost any scientist) that, in effect, personal anecdotes might be remembered "long after (their) contributions to science... have joined the melting pot of anonymity". The author concludes:
" The impact of the Martians on questions of war and peace and world political affairs is another matter. Szilard's envisioning of the nuclear chain reaction that might lead to an explosion, the Szilard-Wigner-Teller trio's action in initiating Einstein's letter to President Roosevelt, thus setting the development of nuclear weaponry in motion, and Teller's contribution to inducing the United States to develop the hydrogen bomb, including von Neumann's and von Karman's applications of computation, mathematics and mechanics for modern warfare, decisively affected how the second half of the twentieth century played out. In these deeds the time element was more significant than it is in scientific discoveries: it was of decisive importance. Scientific excellence and creativity, political sagacity, and fierce dedication to democracy and freedom together carried the Martians to the place they hold today: among the important contributors to the history of the twentieth century."
The lives of all seem improbable in retrospect. All had Jewish heritage and, as the author points out, it is unlikely they would have survived the Holocaust had they remained in Hungary or Germany through WWII. Their brilliance gave them a chance. And they exploited their opportunities. All became devoted to the USA, and valued the intellectual and political freedom afforded them there. All achieved great influence - from von Neumann's appointment to Princeton's Center for Advanced Studies to von Karman's leading role in the aviation industry and rocketry to Teller's influence in national defense, particularly in the Reagan years.
The book's narrative is sometimes a bit labored and bytimes its structure seems more like a science paper than popular history. And yet, it is readable and offers a unique perspective on its times. The details of the Manhattan Project alone are illuminating and left me with a new perspective.
The ending is insightful and astute. The author notes that one would expect all scientific discoveries to be made eventually - for example, relativity would have been explored by another at a later time if Einstein had not done so. He follows this line of thought with a comment by Michael Polanyi about Szilard that could apply to all the Martians (or almost any scientist) that, in effect, personal anecdotes might be remembered "long after (their) contributions to science... have joined the melting pot of anonymity". The author concludes:
" The impact of the Martians on questions of war and peace and world political affairs is another matter. Szilard's envisioning of the nuclear chain reaction that might lead to an explosion, the Szilard-Wigner-Teller trio's action in initiating Einstein's letter to President Roosevelt, thus setting the development of nuclear weaponry in motion, and Teller's contribution to inducing the United States to develop the hydrogen bomb, including von Neumann's and von Karman's applications of computation, mathematics and mechanics for modern warfare, decisively affected how the second half of the twentieth century played out. In these deeds the time element was more significant than it is in scientific discoveries: it was of decisive importance. Scientific excellence and creativity, political sagacity, and fierce dedication to democracy and freedom together carried the Martians to the place they hold today: among the important contributors to the history of the twentieth century."
June 3, 2017
Martians of Science had a lot of good information in it, but the book is terribly organized.
The book is made up of five biographies, but the biographies are all segmented by time period as well. You first read about one physicists life for twenty years, then go back and read about another person for that same twenty year period. After repeating that for all the physicists, you then jump to the next twenty year period and repeat the process. This book structure made it very hard for me to follow what was going on. I still don't fully know who was where at what time.
The book was also disorganized on the micro level. The writing jumps from topic to topic at seeming random. I remember reading one sentence about dress neck-lines in Princeton, and the very next sentence was about the rise of Hitler in Germany.
Other than the poor organization, this book was pretty good. It had a lot of information. I know a lot more about these Hungarian physicists now, as well as the time period that they lived in. The book covers almost a hundred years of history, including the rise of aeronautics and nuclear physics. It also compares and contrasts the way different physicists did things, which makes them seem more human.
The book is made up of five biographies, but the biographies are all segmented by time period as well. You first read about one physicists life for twenty years, then go back and read about another person for that same twenty year period. After repeating that for all the physicists, you then jump to the next twenty year period and repeat the process. This book structure made it very hard for me to follow what was going on. I still don't fully know who was where at what time.
The book was also disorganized on the micro level. The writing jumps from topic to topic at seeming random. I remember reading one sentence about dress neck-lines in Princeton, and the very next sentence was about the rise of Hitler in Germany.
Other than the poor organization, this book was pretty good. It had a lot of information. I know a lot more about these Hungarian physicists now, as well as the time period that they lived in. The book covers almost a hundred years of history, including the rise of aeronautics and nuclear physics. It also compares and contrasts the way different physicists did things, which makes them seem more human.
September 21, 2019
Interesting comparative biography of 5 Hungarian physicists who played key roles in the lead-up to WW2, in the Manhattan Project and during the Cold War. The five are Theodor Van Karman, Leo Szilard, Eugene Wigner, John Von Neumann and Edward Teller. The fact that they were Jewish and forced to leave Europe before the war is of course the central fact of their lives. In fact, all 5 left Hungary first to go to Germany of all places, both before and after WW1 to study in the nation with probably the dominant scientific establishment in the world at the time. Fortunately all departed before the ascent of you know who and played varying but significant roles in the Manhattan Project and in Teller's case later persuading the U.S. to build the H-bomb.
April 14, 2023
Five Hungarian scientists: Szilard conceived the nuclear chain reaction, Teller is the bad guy from Dr. Strangelove, Von Karman is the namesake for the Earth’s boundary with space, Von Neumann is the father of computing, and Wigner is the only one who won the Nobel prize. The book would have been much better had the biographies been one after another; I found myself confused on who was who as you’re jumping between 5 very similar scientists, which is why I shaved off one star. I really enjoyed the stories and achievements. Fascinating to learn about their contributions to aerodynamics, mathematics, nuclear physics, computing, and winning WWII and the Cold War.
June 9, 2022
Interesting concept, to combine the life of five hungerian physicists into one book. The start is very interesting, but at the end there are some chapters which could have been shorter.
Overall a good experience for people interested in physics and the history of warfare in the twentieth century.
Overall a good experience for people interested in physics and the history of warfare in the twentieth century.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 8 reviews