r/OppenheimerMovie • u/ava_fake • Nov 20 '24

Oppenheimer’s bet against Kistiakowsky is worth ~$175 today General Discussion

42 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

u/2EM18KKC01 Nov 21 '24

‘I’m good for it, Kisty!’

u/MakeMineMovies Nov 20 '24

Okay

u/Environmental-Bus542 Nov 27 '24

I'm not convinced such a bet ever took place ... but it could have.

As July 16, 1945 neared, tensions at Los Alamos ran high. The movie "Oppenheimer" has a scene where Enrico Fermi (not clearly identified) is taking bets on whether or not the bomb will ignite the atmosphere and destroy the Earth.

Remember ... Fermi, known as "The Pope of Physics" and/or "The Last Man who knew Everything" was the greatest physicist in the world. The "Bookie" scene is beneath him, but he and his wife Laura were consummate entertainers. In his position as Associate Director of the Los Alamos Lab, I could see Enrico and Laura working to boost morale at a difficult time for the Lab using betting for humor.

George Kistiakowsky was hired by Arthur Compton in 1941 as a "hired gun" to solve Atomic Bomb ignition problems. He came highly recommended by Jim Conant (president of Harvard). When Los Alamos couldn't solve the implosion problem, Arthur Compton asked Kistiakowsky to visit Los Alamos as a consultant. Within weeks Kistiakowsky was made director of the "Critical Assembly" Group. The Oppenheimer/Kistiakowsky bet, if it ever took place was likely another diversion designed to entertain/divert the Los Alamos researchers.

I doubt that Kistiakowsky had any doubts about his implosion scheme working.

P.S. - Kistiakowsky was picked by President Eisenhower as his National Security Advisor. "Ike" later used him as a "Secret Agent" to investigate our Strategic Air Command.