Leo Szilard Biography

Leo Szilard biography

Quick Facts

NAME: Leo Szilard
OCCUPATION: Physicist
BIRTH DATE: February 11, 1898
DEATH DATE: May 30, 1964
EDUCATION: Technische Hochschule, University of Berlin
PLACE OF BIRTH: Budapest, Hungary
PLACE OF DEATH: La Jolla, California
Full Name: Leo Szilard
AKA: Leó Szilárd

Best Known For

A student of such famed physicists as Albert Einstein and Max Planck, Leo Szilard was key in getting the United States to work on the atomic bomb.

Quiz

Think you know about Biography?

Answer questions and see how you rank against other players.

Play Now

Print Cite This

Leo Szilard

APA Style

Leo Szilard. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 12:29, May 18, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/leo-szilard-9500919.

Harvard Style

Leo Szilard. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/leo-szilard-9500919 [Accessed 18 May 2013].

MLA Style

"Leo Szilard." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 18 2013, 12:29 http://www.biography.com/people/leo-szilard-9500919.

MHRA Style

"Leo Szilard," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/leo-szilard-9500919 [accessed May 18, 2013].

Chicago Style

"Leo Szilard," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/leo-szilard-9500919 (accessed May 18, 2013).

CBE/CSE Style

Leo Szilard [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 18] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/leo-szilard-9500919.

Bluebook Style

Leo Szilard, http://www.biography.com/people/leo-szilard-9500919 (last visited May 18, 2013).

AMA Style

Leo Szilard. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/leo-szilard-9500919. Accessed May 18, 2013.

With the Nazis trying to take over Europe, they were concerned about what would happen if the Germans developed the bomb first.

The Manhattan Project

To this end, Szilard became a part of the famed Manhattan Project, which sought to transform atomic energy for military purposes. He conducted research at the University of Chicago from 1942 to 1945. There, Szilard worked with Enrico Fermi to build the first nuclear reactor.

Forever changed by seeing the destructive force of the atomic bomb, Szilard joined the Emergency Committee of Atomic Scientists. This international organization wanted to prevent further military use of atomic energy. For the rest of his life, Szilard worked on nuclear safety and arms control. He started the Council for a Livable World in 1962, which is still dedicated to reducing the threat posed by nuclear weapons.

Leo Szilard died on May 30, 1964, in La Jolla, California.