The Deadly Bite: Confirming Robert Oppenheimer’s Poisonous Past

True Story: Yes, Robert Oppenheimer Really Did Poison His Professor’s Apple

The Depressed College Student

Before J. Robert Oppenheimer became the world’s most famous physicist, he was a depressed college student with a troubled past. Enrolled at Cambridge in the UK, far from his family in New York City and his beloved New Mexico, he found himself immersed in the study of quantum physics while struggling with a deep depression.

In a letter to a friend in 1925, Oppenheimer expressed his despair, stating, “I am having a pretty bad time. The lab work is a terrible bore, and I am so bad at it that it is impossible to feel that I am learning anything…. The lectures are vile.” This sense of hopelessness is vividly captured in the movie “Oppenheimer” through a scene in which the young scientist sabotages a lab experiment, only to be shamed for his actions by his mentor Patrick Blackett, who would later go on to win a Nobel Prize.

Oppenheimer’s Revenge

The most dramatic part of Oppenheimer’s college years, however, is his act of revenge against his mentor. After Blackett forbids Oppenheimer from attending a lecture by the renowned physicist Niels Bohr, Oppenheimer decides to inject the professor’s apple with cyanide while putting away lab supplies. While the movie “Oppenheimer” portrays this event in a cinematic manner, the biographers Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin confirm that this incident did indeed occur, albeit perhaps not exactly as depicted.

In their book “American Prometheus,” Bird and Sherwin detail Oppenheimer’s emotional distress at the time, describing his act as one borne out of his feelings of inadequacy and intense jealousy. According to Oppenheimer’s friend Jeffries Wyman, the substance used in the poisoning may not have been cyanide, but something that would only induce illness. Regardless, Wyman maintains that the act was motivated by jealousy.

The Consequences

Although the poisoning was far less harmful than initially intended, Cambridge officials discovered what Oppenheimer had done. In order to prevent him from being expelled, Oppenheimer’s influential parents had to intervene on his behalf. Interestingly, there is no mention of Niels Bohr in connection with this incident, as the famous Danish physicist played by Kenneth Branagh is a fictional addition to the movie. However, the fictional inclusion helps underscore Oppenheimer’s admiration for Bohr, which becomes significant later in his life when Bohr visits Los Alamos.

After this incident, Oppenheimer moves on to study in Germany and then at Berkeley, where he begins his journey to change the world with the development of the atomic bomb. The poisoned apple incident is left safely in the past, and Oppenheimer’s youthful dissatisfaction gives way to his remarkable scientific achievements.

The Symbolism of the Poisoned Apple

While the act of poisoning an apple has long been associated with fairy tales, most famously in the story of Snow White, it also carries a tragic weight in the life of another real scientist, Alan Turing. Turing, who was instrumental in deciphering German transmissions during World War II, died in 1952 from cyanide poisoning, with a half-eaten apple found beside his body. The parallel between Oppenheimer’s poisoned apple and Turing’s demise serves as a reminder of the complexities and tragedies that can befall great minds.

Conclusion

The story of Robert Oppenheimer poisoning his professor’s apple reveals a dimension of his early life that is often overshadowed by his later accomplishments. It highlights the struggles and emotional turmoil that can accompany genius, and serves as a cautionary tale against the destructive nature of jealousy.

While Oppenheimer managed to move beyond his youthful mistakes and make significant contributions to science, the poisoned apple remains a potent symbol, reminding us of the delicate line between brilliance and despair.