Something Incredibly Wonderful Happens: Frank Oppenheimer and the World He Made Up

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Overview

As a young man Frank Oppenheimer followed in his famous brother’s footsteps—growing up in a privileged Manhattan household, becoming a physicist, working on the atomic bomb. Tragically, Frank and Robert both had their careers destroyed by the Red Scare. But their paths diverged. While Robert died an almost ruined man, Frank came into his own, emerging from ten years of exile on a Colorado ranch to create not just a multimillion dollar institution but also a revolution that was felt all over the world. His Exploratorium was a "museum of human awareness" that combined art and science while it encouraged play, experimentation, and a sense of joy and wonder; its success inspired a ...

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Overview

As a young man Frank Oppenheimer followed in his famous brother’s footsteps—growing up in a privileged Manhattan household, becoming a physicist, working on the atomic bomb. Tragically, Frank and Robert both had their careers destroyed by the Red Scare. But their paths diverged. While Robert died an almost ruined man, Frank came into his own, emerging from ten years of exile on a Colorado ranch to create not just a multimillion dollar institution but also a revolution that was felt all over the world. His Exploratorium was a "museum of human awareness" that combined art and science while it encouraged play, experimentation, and a sense of joy and wonder; its success inspired a transformation in museums around the globe. In many ways it was Frank’s answer to the atom bomb. K. C. Cole—a friend and colleague of Frank’s for many years—has drawn from letters, documents, and extensive interviews to write a very personal story of the man whose irrepressible spirit would inspire so many.

Editorial Reviews

From Barnes & Noble
Physicist Frank Oppenheimer (1912-85) grew up in the shadow of his much older brother, J. Robert (1904-67), and in the view of many authors, he remains there to this day, popping up in biographies and histories mainly as a footnote to the brilliant Los Alamos director. Even the story of his devastating appearances before a Communist-hunting congressional committee, which temporarily ruined his career, has been treated as a sidelight to the much larger controversies surrounding his brother's loyalty. K. C. Cole rectifies all those historical mishaps with this richly detailed, deeply sympathetic biography of a man who remade his life several times, ultimately emerging as the creator of the "hands on" museum movement.
Publishers Weekly

Many visitors to the world-famous Exploratorium in San Francisco probably know little about its founder, Frank Oppenheimer (1912-1985). Like his brother, physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, Frank both worked on the Manhattan Project and was a victim of the 1950s Red Scare. Blacklisted and unable to find a university professorship, he taught high school in Colorado, turning out scores of science prize winners. After moving to California, Oppenheimer drew on his teaching experience to found the Exploratorium, a hands-on science museum that continues to influence others in the field. In this fond memoir, well-regarded science writer Cole (The Universe and the Teacup), who knew Oppenheimer well, capably surveys his early career, but the book's true subject is his work at the Exploratorium and his philosophy, not just of science education but of life. This constitutes most of the second half of the book, which may frustrate readers looking for pure biography, but it offers much that is provocative for those interested in science education. 8 pages of b&w photos.(Aug. 4)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

More Reviews (2) Fewer Reviews
Library Journal

Physicist Frank Oppenheimer has long been overshadowed by his controversial older brother, Robert, the "father of the atomic bomb," although his scientific career was also destroyed by the Red Scare of the 1950s. Cole (Mind over Matter; The Hole in the Universe) was a close friend of Oppenheimer's and draws upon his papers, numerous interviews, and her personal experience to paint a picture of his life. Oppenheimer was deeply affected by working on the Manhattan Project. After being blacklisted during the McCarthy era, he ran a cattle ranch and taught high school physics before reemerging into public life in 1969 to create the Exploratorium, a revolutionary hands-on museum in San Francisco that combined art and science. Cole devotes the largest portion of her book to discussing this period of Oppenheimer's life, as it embodies his passion for teaching and fostering creativity. Indeed, it would be impossible to present the story of Oppenheimer's life without discussing the Exploratorium, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Verdict In a thought-provoking and pleasant manner, Cole's much-welcomed book shines a new light on a remarkable man and scientist. Readers interested in good popular science biographies will enjoy this. [See Prepub Alert, LJ4/15/09.]—William Baer, Georgia Inst. of Technology Lib., Atlanta


—William Baer
Kirkus Reviews
An admiring biography of Frank Oppenheimer (1912-1985) by a friend and colleague, science writer Cole (Journalism/Univ. of Southern California; Mind Over Matter: Conversations with the Cosmos, 2003, etc.). Eight years younger than his brother J. Robert, the father of the atomic bomb, Frank was also a physicist but differed in having a common touch, a cheerful, outgoing personality and, unlike his theoretician brother, great mechanical skills. He helped develop the cyclotron and participated in the Manhattan project. Like Robert, he sympathized with communist causes during the 1930s and suffered for it during the McCarthy era, when the University of Minnesota forced him to resign in 1949 and no other university would hire him. Taking his family to rural Colorado, he spent ten years raising cattle but also revealed a genius for teaching. By the late '50s, students at his obscure high school regularly won the state science fair. As his reputation spread, he began holding classes for teachers and finally rejoined academia at the University of Colorado in 1961. Oppenheimer soon discovered that teaching science fascinated him more than the new, high-pressure world of postwar physics. In 1967 he moved to San Francisco to put his ideas into practice. Employing boundless energy and charm and influential friends, he established the Exploratorium, whose imaginative approach has transformed museums around the world. Science and cold-war politics occupy less than half the book, which emphasizes the struggle to build the museum and keep it running while hewing to Oppenheimer's goal of combining art and science in ingenious, often hands-on exhibits. A sympathetic tribute to a brilliant physicist whogave up research to inspire a love for science in laymen.

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780151008223
  • Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  • Publication date: 8/4/2009
  • Pages: 416
  • Sales rank: 721,068
  • Product dimensions: 6.30 (w) x 9.10 (h) x 1.30 (d)

Meet the Author

A popular science columnist for the Los Angeles Times and teacher at UCLA, K.C. Cole is a recipient of the 1995 American Institute of Physics Award for Best Science Writing. She is also the author of the internationally bestselling The Universe and the Teacup, First You Build a Cloud, and The Hole in the Universe. Cole lives in Santa Monica, California.

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  • Posted August 3, 2009

    deeply insightful about a man, his life, and the revolution he created in museums

    KC Cole is a first rate writer. She takes items of science (in particular) and makes them interesting and understandable to the lay person.

    Frank Oppenheimer was a complex man with a wonderful vision. He left his imprint on many people who met him (I met him once, just briefly) including KC. He also created the quintessential hands-on science museum, the Exploratorium in San Francisco. I have been a member there for many years, and so I am not unbiased in all of this; but after reading KC's book, I saw the exhibits there differently. I can see more clearly that they reflect Frank's vision that the exhibits should be experienced without a "right" result, and that children's play there, however disconnected it seems to be from the science behind the exhibits, should be tolerated and encouraged: the purpose is not to create the next generation of scientists, but to encourage people to observe, to think, to reach their own conclusions.

    I know that KC holds Frank to be a hero and mentor, and sometimes it is hard to be objective or criticize one's heroes. KC is careful not to idealize Frank (and is able to speak of his shortcomings): she gives him the credit due and helps those of us who were not directly touched by Frank to recognize the brilliance of his conception and world view.

    Criticisms: I would have liked more photographs and stories. They were plenty there, but I found myself wrapped up in the book and wanting even more. That isn't really a criticism, but more a statement of how compelling the book is: when you get the feeling for the man and his vision, you want to know even more.

    If you haven't read any of KC's other books, there are treasures waiting for you out there. If you have read others, I am preaching to the choir.

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