Description
The first edition of Atomic Quest: A Personal Narrative by Arthur Holly Compton, the recipient of the 1927 Nobel Prize in Physics and leader of the Manhattan Project. This copy is inscribed by Compton to the doctor treating his reoccurring cerebral hemorrhages.
Octavo, xix, [1], 370pp. Maroon cloth, title stamped in red and silver on spine. No additional printings noted. Illustrated with numerous photographs from the Manhattan Project and further atomic work. Solid text block. In the publisher’s exceptionally rare first state dust jacket, $5.00 on front flap, chipping along edges, sunning to spine, solid hinges, a very good example.
Inscribed on the front free endpaper: “Dr. Keith Wilson / Dear Keith, As a memento of our recent successful adventure with aneurysms, I want you to have this copy of my story of the war-time release of the power of the atomic nucleus. Thanks to your timely diagnosis, you have saved me from further explorations of the mysteries of life. Appreciatively, your friend, Arthur Holly Compton / Otsego Lake, Mich. / Aug. 1, 1959.”
Arthur Holly Compton (1892-1962) was an American physicist whose study of X-rays during the early 1920s led to his discovery of the Compton Effect. For this discovery, he won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1927, sharing it with Charles Wilson. His discoveries were key to the eventual development of atomic energy. He was asked to join the Manhattan Project in 1942, becoming head of “X-Projects” at the Metallurgical Laboratory at the University of Chicago. After the war, Compton taught at the Washington University in St. Louis, and passed away at the age of 69.
