Book summaryThis is the story of Alfred L. Loomis, the eccentric Wall Street tycoon, millionaire, and amateur scientist whose participation behind the scenes of World War II aided in bringing about its conclusion. In his mansion in Tuxedo Park, Loomis culled the great minds of his times, funded research on radar detection systems, and championed the construction of the atomic bomb. Media reviews"By the time you are finished, you are prepared to bestow on Alfred Lee Loomis the title of Most Interesting Man I Never Knew Anything About....Loomis and Conant are just right for each other. She has a fluid writing style, though the book's jaunty pace slows at times." |
Tuxedo Park: a Wall Street Tycoon and the Secret Palace of Science That Changed the Course of World War IIby Conant, Jennet
Book desription: New York: Simon & Schuster. Very Good in Very Good dust jacket. 2002. Hardcover. 0684872870 . 330, [1] pages, 8 plates, map, cloth, DJ, very good. From Booklist: Alfred Loomis, a fabulously wealthy financier and amateur physicist, built a private laboratory in a wealthy New York suburb, attracting the greatest scientific geniuses of his time and supporting research that helped the U. S and its allies prevail in World War II. Conant, granddaughter to one of the scientists who worked with Loomis, brings journalistic skills and close personal perspective to an extraordinary enterprise born of the intersection of commerce and science in the 1930s and 1940s. The fairly reclusive Loomis left little record of his achievement, but Conant gained access to the private papers of several of the scientists involved. Their work consisted of research on sophisticated radar equipment, navigation systems, and the atomic bomb, developed through Loomis' encouragement. The narrative conveys the excitement and immediacy of scientific discovery, the heightening tensions of war, and the budding debate about the ultimate use of atomic weapons at a crucial time in world history. Conant displays a real feel for the personal lives and sensibilities of the era's leading scientists and industrialists in a fascinating, never-before-told bit of American history. B17-1 ; 330 pages .
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