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It makes sense that the nuclear physicists involved actually meant that history would record they "desired to produce" or "hoped to produce" - their spoken Germ

• eesmith 8y ago
  The "WEIZSÄCKER" here is Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker. Quoting https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Friedrich_von_Weizs%C3%A4cker https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Friedrich_von_Weizs%C3%A4... > Born in Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, he was the grandson of Karl Hugo von Weizsäcker, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Württemberg. His grandfather was ennobled in 1897 and raised to the hereditary nobility with the title of Baron (Freiherr) in 1916. As such, the four-year-old Carl Friedrich Weizsäcker became Baron Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker. Since 1919, noble titles have legally been considered parts of the family name. > Weizsäcker was raised in Stuttgart, Basel and Copenhagen. Between 1929 and 1933 Weizsäcker studied physics, mathematics and astronomy in Berlin, Göttingen and Leipzig, supervised by and working with Heisenberg and Niels Bohr, among others. The supervisor of his doctoral thesis was Friedrich Hund. I therefore cannot believe that his "spoken German was probably not very good." That Wikipedia link gives a further description > the "Farm Hall Transcripts" also revealed that Weizsäcker had taken the lead in arguing for an agreement among the scientists that they would claim that they had never wanted to develop a German nuclear weapon. This story was at least untrue to the extent that the detainees also included scientists actively engaged in eager attempts to build a nuclear bomb, namely Kurt Diebner and Walter Gerlach.[14] Max von Laue later called this agreement "die Lesart" (the Version). Thus, I think you should see this as an attempt to create a narrative that likely didn't exist.
  • zunzun 8y ago
    Thus, I was being mildly sarcastic about the German scientists ability to speak German.
    • eesmith 8y ago
      It came across as a comment by someone very ignorant of the history around the German nuclear program. Not only was it nonsensical for Weizsäcker specifically, Heisenberg was attacked by proponents of the "Deutsche Physik" movement, who had a particular hatred of the "Jewish physics" which turned out to be so useful for nuclear weapons development. They believed Heisenberg wasn't German enough - a 'White Jew'. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deutsche_Physik https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deutsche_Physik Your sarcastic comment also suggests that the physicists on the German nuclear project weren't German enough to even speak German well. For anyone who knows the history, your attempt at humor instead comes across as a continuation of the anti-Semitic smear attack on Heisenberg. Since that isn't what you meant, it means that you don't know anywhere near enough of the history to be at the point where you should be comfortable in making sarcastic comments.
      • zunzun 8y ago
        Consider me to have been properly and most righteously chastised.