Transcribing the Past

  The letter below, sent to the U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt on August 2, 1939, was signed by Albert Einstein but was largely written by the Hungarian physicist Leó Szilárd. No attempt at original formatting has been made. Albert Einstein Old Grove Rd. Nassau Point Peconic, Long Island August 2nd, 1939 F.D. Roosevelt President of the United States, White House Washington, D.C. Sir: Some recent work by E.Fermi and L. Szilard, which has been communicated to me in manuscript, leads me to expect that the element uranium may be turned into a new and important source of energy in the immediate future. Certain aspects of the situation which has arisen seem to call for watchfulness and, if necessary, quick action on the part of the Administration. I believe therefore that it is my duty to bring to your attention the following facts and recommendations: In the course of the last four months it has been made probable – through the work of Joliot in France as well as Fermi and Szilard...

 July 3, 1945 A PETITION TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES Discoveries of which the people of the United States are not aware may affect the welfare of this nation in the near future. The liberation of atomic power which has been achieved places atomic bombs in the hands of the Army. It places in your hands, as Commander-in-Chief, the fateful decision whether or not to sanction the use of such bombs in the present phase of the war against Japan. We, the undersigned scientists, have been working in the field of atomic power for a number of years. Until recently we have had to reckon with the possibility that the United States might be attacked by atomic bombs during this war and that her only defense might lie in a counterattack by the same means. Today with this danger averted we feel impelled to say what follows The war has to be brought speedily to a successful conclusion and the destruction of Japanese cities by means of atomic bombs may very well be an effective method of w...

   The original letter can be found on Scribd.com  Disclaimer: This transcription was not produced by me, though given the nature of the blog hosting, a copy here seemed appropriate. In addition, hosting does not mean endorsement etc. From Chloë Deakin E3 Albany Piccadilly W1V 9RH 01-734 1717 and 1718 4th June 1981 Dear Master, I am happy to say that I am not acquainted with N. P. Farage, or happy, because judging from the reports I have received he is not someone with whom I would wish to be acquainted; and because I am, therefore, able to write on the ground of no personal prejudice, but on that concerning principle. You will recall that at the recent, and lengthy, meeting about the selection of prefects, the remark by a colleague that Farage was “a fascist, but that was no reason why he would not make a good prefect” invoked considerable reaction from members of the Common Room. Another colleague, who teaches t...