What Happened on August 2

National Desk

1939 — Einstein Warns Roosevelt of Atomic Peril

Albert Einstein signs a letter, drafted by Leo Szilard, warning that Germany may be building atomic bombs and urging the U.S. to begin its own nuclear program.

PEHCONIC, Long Island, Aug. 2 — Albert Einstein has signed a letter to President Roosevelt warning that Germany may be building atomic bombs and urging the United States to start its own nuclear program.

The letter, drafted by the Hungarian physicist Leo Szilard, was carried here today by Szilard and a fellow physicist, Edward Teller, to obtain the famed scientist's signature. It warns that a single bomb carried by boat could destroy an entire port and the surrounding territory.

The letter notes that Germany has stopped the sale of uranium from Czechoslovakian mines it has taken over, a move that suggests Berlin is husbanding the element for military experiments. Einstein, who fled Nazi Germany in 1933, has long urged the democracies to keep pace in physics.

The two Hungarians drove out to the quiet shore community to put the finished document before Einstein, who reviewed it and signed without hesitation. Szilard has been pressing for months for a way to bring the danger to official notice in Washington.

The letter is expected to be delivered to the White House in the coming weeks. What the president may do with it is not yet known, but those close to the physicists believe it will spur an American effort to master the atom before the Germans do.

• The letter was written by Leo Szilard and signed by Albert Einstein on August 2, 1939.
• The letter warned that Germany might develop atomic bombs and urged the United States to start its own nuclear program.
• Szilard and fellow Hungarian physicist Edward Teller drove to Long Island on August 2 to obtain Einstein's signature.
• The letter stated that a single bomb carried by boat could destroy an entire port and surrounding territory.
• The letter noted Germany had stopped the sale of uranium from Czechoslovakian mines it had taken over.

Science Desk

1932 — Caltech Physicist Proves Existence of Antimatter

Caltech physicist's new photographs confirm a particle predicted by Dirac.

PASADENA, Aug. 2 — Carl David Anderson, a physicist at the California Institute of Technology, has proved the existence of antimatter with the discovery of a positive electron, the positron.

Anderson first detected the particles in cosmic rays using a cloud chamber, and then produced conclusive proof by shooting gamma rays from thorium C'' into various materials, creating positron-electron pairs. His photographs show a track that curves as a positive particle would in a magnetic field.

The discovery validates the theoretical prediction made by Paul Dirac, whose equations had suggested that every particle has a mirror-image counterpart. Anderson's work, published in the Physical Review, is the first experimental confirmation.

The physicist has acknowledged that his research was inspired by the earlier work of a Caltech classmate, Chung-Yao Chao, whose cloud chamber observations hinted at the new particle. Anderson pursued the question with a stronger magnetic field and sharper photographs.

• Anderson first detected positrons in cosmic rays using a cloud chamber.
• Anderson produced conclusive proof by shooting gamma rays from ThC'' (208Tl) into materials, creating positron-electron pairs.
• Anderson's discovery validated Paul Dirac's theoretical prediction of the positron's existence.
• Anderson shared the 1936 Nobel Prize in Physics with Victor Hess for the positron discovery.
• Anderson acknowledged his discovery was inspired by the work of Caltech classmate Chung-Yao Chao.

Washington Bureau

1923 — Coolidge Sworn In as 30th President After Harding's Death

Vice president takes oath in family parlor after Warren G. Harding's fatal heart attack; new chief executive pledges continuity.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 2 — Calvin Coolidge became the 30th president of the United States today upon the sudden death of Warren G. Harding, who suffered a fatal heart attack.

Coolidge, who was vice president, took the oath of office in the family parlor of his home in Plymouth Notch, Vermont, with his father, a notary public, administering the oath at 2:47 a.m. The new president, born on July 4, 1872, in that same village, is the only chief executive born on Independence Day.

Reports from the capital say the cabinet has been notified, and Coolidge is expected to travel to Washington shortly. The nation mourns Harding, who died in San Francisco, but the government continues without interruption.

• Coolidge became president upon Warren G. Harding's sudden death on August 2, 1923.
• Coolidge's father, a notary public, administered the oath of office in the family parlor at 2:47 a.m. on August 3, 1923.
• Coolidge was the only U.S. president born on Independence Day, July 4, 1872, in Plymouth Notch, Vermont.
• Coolidge delivered the first ever radio broadcast from the White House on February 22, 1924.
• Lee de Forest recorded Coolidge on the White House lawn with Phonofilm on August 11, 1924, creating the first audiovisual recording of a US president.

Court Circular

1100 — King William Rufus Slain by Arrow in New Forest

King William II, known as William Rufus, is dead after an arrow through the lung while hunting in the New Forest.

WINCHESTER, Aug. 2 — King William II of England, known as William Rufus, is dead, killed by an arrow through the lung while hunting in the New Forest.

The arrow was loosed by one of his own men, a hunting companion, in what many call an inaccurate shot.

• King William II, also known as William Rufus, died in the New Forest in 1100.
• Many claim William II was killed by an inaccurate arrow shot from his hunting companion.
• Local folklore asserted William II's death was punishment for crimes committed when his father created the New Forest.
• Seventeenth-century writer Richard Blome provides detail on William II's death in the New Forest.

Rock Desk

1971 — Who's Next Tops UK Charts, Cementing Who's Rock Legacy

The Who's fifth album, released today, becomes their only UK chart-topper.

LONDON, Aug. 2 — The Who's new album, Who's Next, released today, has become their first and only record to top the UK charts. The fifth studio album from the English rock band grew out of Pete Townshend's abandoned Lifehouse project; eight of its nine songs derive from that rock opera.

• Who's Next is the fifth studio album by the English rock band the Who, released on 2 August 1971.
• The album developed from the aborted Lifehouse project, a multi-media rock opera conceived by guitarist Pete Townshend.
• Eight of the nine songs on Who's Next were from Lifehouse, with the lone exception being John Entwistle's 'My Wife'.
• The cover photo, shot by Ethan Russell, referenced the monolith in the 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey.
• The Who recorded Who's Next with assistance from recording engineer Glyn Johns at Olympic Studios.

Engineering Notes

1870 — Tower Subway Opens Beneath Thames

London's new underground railway carries passengers through a 1,340-foot tunnel for a penny or two.

LONDON, Aug. 2 — In an age of iron and steam, the Tower Subway, a new underground railway beneath the Thames, opens today, joining the earliest tube lines in the world. The 1,340-foot tunnel features a 2 ft 6 in narrow-gauge railway and a cable-hauled wooden carriage.

• The Tower Subway opened on 2 August 1870, charging 2d for first class and 1d for second class.
• First class ticket holders received priority for the lifts and when boarding the carriage.
• The 1,340-foot tunnel featured a 2 ft 6 in narrow-gauge railway and a cable-hauled wooden carriage.
• The subway company went into receivership in November 1870 due to unreliability and uneconomic operation.
• The Tower Subway railway closed on 7 December 1870, only four months after its opening.

National Affairs

1790 — First Census Completed; Population 3,929,214

Secretary Jefferson's marshals count 3,929,214 inhabitants across thirteen states and the Southwest Territory.

PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 2 — Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, having directed the marshals in their collections, today declared the first United States census officially completed, with the nation's residential population enumerated at 3,929,214. The count, taken as of Census Day, August 2, 1790, covered all thirteen states and the Southwest Territory. The published report runs 56 pages and cost $44,377.28. The census shows the proportion of slaves to the free population at 17.8 percent, the highest ever recorded by any U.S. census. Already, almost one-third of the original data have been lost or destroyed since their documentation. Jefferson said the count will guide the apportionment of representatives and direct taxes, as the Constitution requires.

• The 1790 census recorded a total U.S. population of 3,929,214 inhabitants as of Census Day, August 2, 1790.
• The published census report was 56 pages and cost $44,377.28.
• Almost one-third of the original 1790 census data have been lost or destroyed since their documentation.
• Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson directed the marshals who collected data from all thirteen states and the Southwest Territory.
• The 1790 census's proportion of slaves to the free population was 17.8%, the highest ever recorded by any U.S. census.

Classical Desk

-338 — Philip of Macedon Crushes Athens, Thebes at Chaeronea

Victory secures Macedonian hegemony over most of ancient Greece.

CHAERONEA, Aug. 2 — In a single decisive engagement, the allied army of Philip II of Macedon has overcome the combined forces of Athens and Thebes, securing Macedonian hegemony over most of ancient Greece.

• After Chaeronea, Philip II established the Hellenic League, a federation of Greek states with himself as hegemon.
• Philip II was elected commander-in-chief of Greece for a planned invasion of the Achaemenid Empire.
• Philip II's assassination led to the immediate succession of his son Alexander, who later invaded the Achaemenid Empire.