Leó Szilárd (right) and Albert Einstein re-enact the signing of the famous letter to Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Leó Szilárd (February 11, 1898 – May 30, 1964) was a Jewish Hungarian-American physicist who worked on the Manhattan Project. He was born in Budapest and died in La Jolla, California. source: http://ma. ... source: http://ma. ... Portrait of Albert Einstein taken by Yousuf Karsh on February 11, 1948 Albert Einstein (March 14, 1879 – April 18, 1955) was a theoretical physicist who is widely regarded as the greatest scientist of the 20th century. ... Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882–April 12, 1945), 32nd President of the United States, the longest-serving holder of the office and the only man to be elected President more than twice, was one of the central figures of 20th century history. ... February 11 is the 42nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1898 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... May 30 is the 150th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (151st in leap years). ... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The word Jew (Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ... The word physicist should not be confused with physician, which means medical doctor. ... Control panels and operators for calutrons at the National Security Complex. ... Budapest (pronounced BOO-dah-pesht, IPA ), the capital city of Hungary and the countrys principal political, industrial, commercial and transportation centre, has more than 1. ... One of the beaches at La Jolla Cove. ... State nickname: The Golden State Other U.S. States Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Official languages English Area 410,000 km² (3rd)  - Land 404,298 km²  - Water 20,047 km² (4. ...

He was probably the first scientist to think seriously of building real atomic bombs. (He knew of the fictional "atomic bombs" described in H. G. Wells's science-fiction novel The World Set Free). The possibility of a nuclear chain reaction came to him on September 12, 1933 while he was waiting for a red light on Southampton Row in Bloomsbury. Reportedly, the thought had occurred to Szilárd as a result of his having been annoyed by Ernest Rutherford's dismissal of any talk of atomic energy as "moonshine." Szilárd also was the co-holder, with Enrico Fermi, of the patent on the nuclear reactor ( U.S. Patent 2708656 (http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=2708656.WKU.&OS=PN/2708656&RS=PN/2708656)). The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 km (11 mi) above the epicenter. ... H. G. Wells at the door of his house at Sandgate Herbert George Wells (September 21, 1866–August 13, 1946) was a British writer best known for his science fiction novels such as The War of the Worlds and The Time Machine. ... The World Set Free is a novel published in 1914 by H. G. Wells. ... A nuclear chain reaction occurs when on average more than one nuclear reaction is caused by another nuclear reaction, thus leading to an exponential increase in the number of nuclear reactions. ... September 12 is the 255th day of the year (256th in leap years). ... 1933 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Bloomsbury, a corner pub Bloomsbury is an area of central London, in the Borough of Camden, named after early landowner William de Blemund who acquired the land in 1201. ... Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, OM, FRS (August 30, 1871 - October 19, 1937), called father of nuclear physics, pioneered the orbital theory of the atom notably in his discovery of rutherford scattering off the nucleus with his gold foil experiment. ... Enrico Fermi (September 29, 1901 – November 28, 1954) was an Italian physicist most noted for his work on beta decay, the development of the first nuclear reactor, and for the development of quantum theory. ... Nuclear power station at Leibstadt, Switzerland. ...

He was well known to his colleagues as an eccentric, lightning-quick thinker who "seems fond of startling people" with strange, seemingly incongruous, yet extremely perceptive statements and questions.

He was extremely good at predicting political events. He predicted World War I as a boy, several years before the fact. When the Nazi party first appeared, he predicted that it would one day control Europe. In 1934, he foresaw the details of World War II. He then later made it a habit to reside exclusively in hotel rooms, with a packed suitcase always on hand. Missing image Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... The Nazi party used a right-facing swastika as their symbol and the red and black colors were said to represent Blut und Boden (blood and soil). ... World map showing location of Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... 1934 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ...

Szilard was Jewish and fled to London in 1933 to escape Nazi persecution. While in London, he read an article written by Ernest Rutherford in The Times, after which he conceived the idea of a nuclear chain reaction. In the following year, he filed for a patent on the nuclear chain reaction. He first attempted to create a chain reaction using Beryllium and Indium, but neither yielded the reaction he deliberated. In 1936, he assigned the chain-reaction patent to the British Admiralty to ensure secrecy of the patent (UK Patent 630726 (http://v3.espacenet.com/textdoc?DB=EPODOC&IDX=GB630726&F=0)). The word Jew (Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ... 1933 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, OM, FRS (August 30, 1871 - October 19, 1937), called father of nuclear physics, pioneered the orbital theory of the atom notably in his discovery of rutherford scattering off the nucleus with his gold foil experiment. ... The Times is a national quality daily newspaper in the United Kingdom. ... A nuclear chain reaction occurs when on average more than one nuclear reaction is caused by another nuclear reaction, thus leading to an exponential increase in the number of nuclear reactions. ... General Name, Symbol, Number Beryllium, Be, 4 Series Alkaline earth metals Group, Period, Block 2 (IIA), 2, s Density, Hardness 1848 kg/m3, 5. ... General Name, Symbol, Number indium, In, 49 Chemical series Poor metals Group, Period, Block 13 (IIIA), 5, p Density, Hardness 7310 kg/m3, 1. ... 1936 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... For the international law of the sea, see Admiralty law. ...

In 1938, he accepted an offer to conduct research at Columbia University in Manhattan, and moved to New York. Nobel Laureate Enrico Fermi soon joined him there. After learning about fission in 1939, he concluded that uranium would be the element capable of the chain reaction. Columbia University is a private university in New York City. ... Manhattan is an island bordering the lower Hudson River. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki Official languages None Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ... The Nobel Prizes (pronounced no-BELL or no-bell) are awarded annually to people who have done outstanding research, invented groundbreaking techniques or equipment, or made outstanding contributions to society. ... Enrico Fermi (September 29, 1901 – November 28, 1954) was an Italian physicist most noted for his work on beta decay, the development of the first nuclear reactor, and for the development of quantum theory. ...

Szilárd was instrumental in the development of Pornography. He conceived of the idea of sending a confidential letter to Franklin D. Roosevelt, explaining the possibility, and encouraging the development of such a program, and obtained Albert Einstein's endorsement in August 1939. Later, he moved to the University of Chicago to continue to work on developing the bomb. There, along with Fermi, he helped to construct the first "neutronic reactor", a uranium and graphite "pile" in which the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction was achieved in 1942. Pornography (from Greek πορνογραφια pornographia — literally writing about or drawings of harlots) is the representation of the human body or human sexual behaviour with the goal of sexual arousal, similar to, but (according to some) distinct from, erotica. ... Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882–April 12, 1945), 32nd President of the United States, the longest-serving holder of the office and the only man to be elected President more than twice, was one of the central figures of 20th century history. ... Portrait of Albert Einstein taken by Yousuf Karsh on February 11, 1948 Albert Einstein (March 14, 1879 – April 18, 1955) was a theoretical physicist who is widely regarded as the greatest scientist of the 20th century. ... The University of Chicago is a private co-educational university located in Chicago, Illinois. ... Graphite is one of the allotropes of carbon. ... 1942 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ...

As the war continued, Szilárd became increasingly annoyed at the fact that he was losing power over his scientific developments to the military, and clashed many times with General Leslie Groves, military head of the Manhattan Project. His resentment towards the U.S. government was further exacerbated by his failed attempt to avoid the use of the atomic bomb in war. Leslie Groves Leslie Richard Groves (August 17, 1896 - July 13, 1970) was a member of the United States Army who oversaw the construction of the Pentagon and the primary military leader in charge of the Manhattan Project to develop the atomic bomb during World War II. Born in Albany, New... Wars are often illustrated by arrows representing the movement of armies. ...

As a survivor of the 'shipwreck' of Hungary after World War I, having experienced both red terror and white terror, Szilárd developed an enduring passion for preservation of human life and freedom, especially freedom to communicate ideas. He hoped that the U.S. Government, which before the war was much opposed to the bombing of civilians, would not use the bomb, as the only possible purpose of a weapon of that magnitude could be to slaughter civilians. He hoped that the mere threat of the bomb would force Germany and/or Japan to surrender. Rather than threatening the Axis with the bomb, Harry Truman chose simply to use it, despite the protestations of Szilárd and many of the other top scientists in the project, resulting in the deaths of roughly 300,000 Japanese civilians, the total destruction of Hiroshima, and the partial destruction of Nagasaki. Before the war, Szilárd had considered the U.S. the one truly humane government in the world; that is why he chose to give them, over everyone else, the atomic bomb. He no longer felt that way afterwards. This is the history of Hungary. ... The Axis Powers is a term for those participants in World War II opposed to the Allies. ... For the victim of Mt. ... A civilian is a person who is not a member of a military. ... Main keep of Hiroshima Castle The city of Hiroshima (広島市; -shi) is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture, and the largest city in the Chugoku region of western Japan. ... Megane-bashi, the Eyeglasses Bridge Nagasaki (長崎市; -shi) is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture located at the south-western coast of Kyushu, Japan. ...

In 1943, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ... Naturalization is the process whereby a person becomes a national of a nation, or a citizen of a country, other than the one of his birth. ...

In 1947, he changed fields from physics to molecular biology, working extensively with Aaron Novick. He spent his last years as a fellow at the Salk Institute in San Diego. 1947 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Salk Institute for Biological Studies is a research organization in La Jolla, California. ... San Diego County in the Southwest corner of California. ...

External links

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• Leo Szilard Online (http://www.dannen.com/szilard.html) - an "Internet Historic Site" (first created March 30, 1995) maintained by Gene Dannen
• Leo Szilard's page at atomicarchive.com (http://www.atomicarchive.com/Bios/SzilardPhoto.shtml)

Patents

• US 2708656 (http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=2708656.WKU.&OS=PN/2708656&RS=PN/2708656) -- Neutronic reactor -- E. Fermi et. al.