The Path to Nuclear Fission The Story of Lise Meitner and Otto ... - VEA
The Path to Nuclear Fission The Story of Lise Meitner and Otto ... - VEA
The Path to Nuclear Fission The Story of Lise Meitner and Otto ... - VEA
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<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong><br />
<strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong><br />
<strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong><br />
<strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
Australia<br />
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FREECALL: 1800 034 282<br />
Phone: (03) 5442 2433<br />
Facsimile: (03) 5441 1148<br />
Teacher Notes by Sue Wright, B.Sc., Dip.Ed.<br />
Produced by CS Associates<br />
Distributed by <strong>VEA</strong> Pty Ltd<br />
© <strong>VEA</strong> Pty. Ltd.<br />
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<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
For Teachers:<br />
Introduction<br />
This program deals with the long friendship <strong>and</strong> working relationship <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
who worked in <strong>Nuclear</strong> Physics <strong>and</strong> Chemistry. <strong>The</strong>ir work led <strong>to</strong> the discovery <strong>of</strong> nuclear fission.<br />
<strong>The</strong>ir s<strong>to</strong>ry is set mainly in Germany from about 1912 until their deaths in 1968. <strong>Lise</strong> was from a<br />
Jewish background <strong>and</strong> one <strong>of</strong> the first prominent women Physicists. <strong>The</strong> background <strong>to</strong> their s<strong>to</strong>ry is<br />
two world wars <strong>and</strong> the holocaust as well as the changing role <strong>of</strong> women in society so, although the<br />
s<strong>to</strong>ry is <strong>of</strong> great interest <strong>to</strong> students <strong>of</strong> Chemistry <strong>and</strong> Physics, it is also a fascinating social <strong>and</strong><br />
political documentary.<br />
Website References<br />
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/<strong>Lise</strong>_<strong>Meitner</strong><br />
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ot<strong>to</strong>_Hahn<br />
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_einstein<br />
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Planck<br />
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ot<strong>to</strong>_Robert_Frisch<br />
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niels_Bohr<br />
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/<strong>Meitner</strong>ium<br />
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irene_Joliot-Curie<br />
Other Relevant Programs Available from <strong>VEA</strong><br />
Bohr’s Model <strong>of</strong> the A<strong>to</strong>m<br />
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Science Bank Series<br />
Physical Science in Action Series<br />
What’s Special About Relativity? – Einstein’s Special theory <strong>of</strong> Relativity<br />
Please visit our website for many more relevant programs www.vea.com.au<br />
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2
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
Program Timeline<br />
00:00:00 Introduction <strong>to</strong> Berlin at the turn <strong>of</strong> the last century. Berlin University associated with<br />
Albert Einstein, Gustav Hertz, Max Planck, James Frank <strong>and</strong> Max von Laue<br />
<strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> gains PhD in Physics in Vienna <strong>and</strong> travels <strong>to</strong> Berlin <strong>to</strong> work with Max<br />
Planck.<br />
00:02:00 Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn also comes <strong>to</strong> University <strong>of</strong> Berlin after graduating in Chemistry in Germany<br />
then working at McGill in Montreal Canada where he discovered several radioactive<br />
substances. <strong>The</strong>y met at a physics seminar <strong>and</strong> began working <strong>to</strong>gether.<br />
00:04:00 Friends include Planck’s daughters, Franck <strong>and</strong> Einstein. Fischer, who is their supervisor<br />
won’t let <strong>Meitner</strong> work in the lab <strong>and</strong> she is not paid for her work.<br />
00:07:00 Together they study Beta emitters then move <strong>to</strong> Kaiser Wilhelm Institute where Hahn<br />
becomes a pr<strong>of</strong>essor but <strong>Meitner</strong> is still an unpaid guest despite her growing reputation as a<br />
scientist.<br />
00:08:00 <strong>Meitner</strong> made Max Planck’s assistant in 1912 <strong>and</strong> paid for the first time. 1913 Fischer<br />
appoints her <strong>to</strong> Kaiser Wilhelm with equal status <strong>to</strong> Hahn.<br />
00:09:00 Rutherfords a<strong>to</strong>m with positively charged nucleus <strong>and</strong> cloud <strong>of</strong> electrons. New<br />
underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>of</strong> Periodic table. WW1 begins Hahn in army.<br />
00:11:00 Hahn involved with use <strong>of</strong> poison gases in the war. Science as a double edged sword<br />
creating or destroying misery. <strong>Meitner</strong> managing lab in Hahn’s absence.<br />
00:12:00 <strong>Meitner</strong> works as an X-ray nurse for Austrian army <strong>and</strong> sees first h<strong>and</strong> misery <strong>of</strong> war.<br />
Anecdote about naivety <strong>of</strong> Einstein.<br />
00:14:00 <strong>Meitner</strong> given her own lab. Discovers element 91 Protactinium. End <strong>of</strong> the war. Political<br />
unrest, poverty <strong>and</strong> disease in Germany. Hitler writes “Mein Kampf” in prison. <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong><br />
Hahn leaders in field <strong>of</strong> study <strong>of</strong> radioactive decay.<br />
00:17:00 1924 <strong>and</strong> life is better in Berlin until 1929 when the s<strong>to</strong>ck market crashes <strong>and</strong> the<br />
depression begins.<br />
00:18:00 <strong>The</strong> Hitler years begin. Hahn is at Cornell as a guest. <strong>Meitner</strong> is Jewish by birth. Hahn<br />
returns <strong>to</strong> Germany. In 1933 Kaiser Wilhelm Institute fires most <strong>of</strong> its Jewish Scientists.<br />
<strong>Meitner</strong> is not fired.<br />
00:23:00 In 1932 James Chadwick had discovered the neutron. <strong>Meitner</strong> continues her work but she<br />
can no longer teach, attend conferences or deliver papers. <strong>Meitner</strong> says later that she should<br />
have left on moral grounds.<br />
00:25:00 Fermi’s work in Rome where he bombards Uranium nuclei with neutrons leads <strong>to</strong><br />
suggestion there may be elements beyond Uranium. <strong>Meitner</strong> teams with Hahn <strong>and</strong><br />
Strassman <strong>to</strong> look for these elements but wrong assumptions are made that bombarding<br />
with neutrons leads <strong>to</strong> creation <strong>of</strong> a<strong>to</strong>ms with one more neutron in their nucleus because<br />
they assume that changes in nuclei can only be small changes. <strong>The</strong> idea that the nucleus<br />
could be split is not considered a possibility<br />
00:28:00 1938 after 4 years more work Hitler marches in<strong>to</strong> Austria. All Austrians become German<br />
citizens so <strong>Meitner</strong> is no longer protected by her Austrian citizenship. Hahn tells her it is<br />
not <strong>to</strong> come <strong>to</strong> the Institute as it is no longer safe.<br />
3
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
00:30:00 <strong>Lise</strong> tries <strong>to</strong> get a passport so she can leave Germany. Bohr <strong>and</strong> other scientists plan <strong>to</strong> help<br />
her leave. She escapes by train <strong>to</strong> the Netherl<strong>and</strong>s with another scientist’s help.<br />
00:34:00 Travels <strong>to</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ckholm <strong>to</strong> work in Siegbahn’s Institute. Isolated <strong>and</strong> unable <strong>to</strong> work here she<br />
corresponds with Hahn about Irene Curies’ work in Paris. <strong>The</strong>y meet at the Bohr Institute in<br />
Copenhagen.<br />
00:37:00 Hahn <strong>and</strong> Strassman try <strong>to</strong> prove they have thorium from the bombardment <strong>of</strong> Uranium as<br />
they can’t believe it could possibly be Barium. Further tests show it is Barium <strong>and</strong> they<br />
wonder how Uranium can produce Barium which is so much smaller. Turns <strong>to</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> for<br />
an explanation.<br />
00:40:00 Spends Christmas with her nephew Frisch <strong>and</strong> they use Bohr’s idea that the nucleus is like a<br />
drop <strong>of</strong> liquid that could separate in 2 <strong>to</strong> explain the Barium result. <strong>The</strong>y add up the<br />
products <strong>of</strong> the disintegration <strong>and</strong> there is something missing so they look at the energy in<br />
the nucleus <strong>and</strong> Einstein’s prediction that E=mc2 <strong>and</strong> it all fits.<br />
00:43:00 Hahn <strong>and</strong> Strassman publish their findings. <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Frisch publish their explanation <strong>of</strong><br />
the findings <strong>and</strong> call it nuclear fission. Hahn doesn’t acknowledge the role <strong>of</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> in<br />
explaining his findings.<br />
00:45:00 Germany invades Pol<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> WW2 begins. <strong>Fission</strong> bomb research begins in Germany,<br />
Britain <strong>and</strong> America. <strong>The</strong> Manhattan project begins but although <strong>Meitner</strong> is invited <strong>to</strong> work<br />
on it she declines <strong>and</strong> remains in S<strong>to</strong>ckholm.<br />
00:47:00 1945 <strong>and</strong> the war is over in Europe. <strong>Meitner</strong> writes <strong>to</strong> Hahn reproaching him for not<br />
resisting the Nazis. Hahn says the German people are not <strong>to</strong> blame.<br />
00:49:00 Hahn wins the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the fission discovery. He never acknowledges<br />
the role <strong>of</strong> Physics. Bohr nominates <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Frisch for a physics Nobel Prize but<br />
Siegbahn prevents this.<br />
00:52:00 Hahn heads the institute now known as the Max Planck Institute <strong>and</strong> is very famous. <strong>Lise</strong> is<br />
less well known but their friendship continues until their deaths in 1968.<br />
00:55:00 1982 <strong>Meitner</strong>ium made <strong>and</strong> named for <strong>Lise</strong><br />
4
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
Student Worksheet:<br />
Before Viewing the Program<br />
General Questions:<br />
1. What would life have been like for a female Jewish Physicist during the 3 rd Reich in Germany?<br />
2. What is a pogrom?<br />
3. What do you know about the first a<strong>to</strong>mic bomb? Was it necessary <strong>to</strong> end the war?<br />
Science Questions:<br />
1. What are Alpha Beta <strong>and</strong> Gamma radiation? Explain each one.<br />
2. Brains<strong>to</strong>rm what you know about a<strong>to</strong>mic bombs.<br />
3. How many Nobel Prize Winners can you name? What categories <strong>of</strong> prizes are there?<br />
5
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
While Viewing the Program<br />
General Questions:<br />
1. Which Scientists are pictured as those working at the University <strong>of</strong> Berlin?<br />
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2. Where does <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> come from <strong>and</strong> who does she work under in Berlin?<br />
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3. What is Hahn’s his<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>and</strong> who does he come <strong>to</strong> work with in Berlin?<br />
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4. What is Fischer’s <strong>and</strong> the other male scientists’ attitude <strong>to</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong>? How are women students<br />
treated generally at this time?<br />
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5. What are Hahn <strong>and</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> studying?<br />
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6
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
6. What is the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute? What are the roles <strong>of</strong> Fischer, Hahn <strong>and</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong>?<br />
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7. What happens <strong>to</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> in 1912? In 1913?<br />
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8. What is Rutherford’s exciting discovery?<br />
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9. What is “the long awaited excuse for war”?<br />
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10. What were the international laws about the use <strong>of</strong> gas in war? What happened <strong>to</strong> Hahn’s scruples?<br />
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7
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
11. What is <strong>Meitner</strong>’s contribution <strong>to</strong> the war effort? What are her impressions?<br />
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12. Why did <strong>Meitner</strong> comment that Einstein was a curiosity?<br />
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13. How is <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Hahn’s working relationship changed in 1917? Could the war have been a<br />
fac<strong>to</strong>r in this?<br />
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14. What are conditions like in Germany after the war?<br />
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8
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
15. Under what circumstances does Hitler write “Mein Kampf”?<br />
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16. What is life like in Berlin between 1924 <strong>and</strong> the s<strong>to</strong>ck market crash?<br />
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17. List the consequences <strong>of</strong> Hitler’s appointment <strong>to</strong> power.<br />
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18. What are Plank <strong>and</strong> Hahn’s attitudes <strong>to</strong> the National Socialist government?<br />
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9
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
19. What happens <strong>to</strong> Jewish scientists in 1933? What about <strong>Meitner</strong>? Why was she reluctant <strong>to</strong> leave<br />
Germany? How was her pr<strong>of</strong>essional life restricted?<br />
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20. Retrospectively, how did she feel about her decision <strong>to</strong> stay?<br />
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21. Whose work led <strong>to</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> establishing the Uranium project? How long did she work on these<br />
elusive new elements?<br />
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22. What event changed her future in Germany? What consequence did the event have for her<br />
personally?<br />
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23. What was the German government’s reason for not giving <strong>Meitner</strong> a passport?<br />
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10
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
24. Why was <strong>Lise</strong>’s escape so fraught with danger? Where did she go <strong>to</strong> work? Was this a satisfac<strong>to</strong>ry<br />
move for her?<br />
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25. What was the night <strong>of</strong> broken glass? Why did Hahn have <strong>to</strong> keep his meeting with <strong>Meitner</strong> in<br />
Copenhagen a secret?<br />
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26. Hahn repeated his experiments until there was only one possible conclusion. What was that<br />
conclusion? Did he underst<strong>and</strong> the result? Who came up with an explanation?<br />
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27. What is the significance <strong>of</strong> the separate publications? Why is <strong>Meitner</strong> surprised by Hahn’s attitude<br />
<strong>to</strong> the discovery?<br />
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28. Why isn’t his attitude surprising? What is fission <strong>to</strong> Hahn?<br />
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11
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
29. What event triggers the declaration <strong>of</strong> the Second World War? What happens in fission research in<br />
Germany? In Engl<strong>and</strong>? In the USA?<br />
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30. What is <strong>Meitner</strong>’s response <strong>to</strong> an invitation <strong>to</strong> work on the bomb?<br />
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31. Briefly describe letters between <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Hahn when the full extent <strong>of</strong> Nazi atrocities are<br />
revealed at the end <strong>of</strong> the war.<br />
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32. How did Bohr try <strong>to</strong> set the record straight after Hahn’s Nobel Prize? Who made sure the award<br />
didn’t happen?<br />
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33. Why was Hahn “their Man”?<br />
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34. What is <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong>’s epitaph?<br />
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12
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
Science Questions:<br />
1. Do you recognise any <strong>of</strong> the scientists working at the University <strong>of</strong> Berlin? Why are they known<br />
<strong>to</strong> you?<br />
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2. What is a beta emitter?<br />
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3. What is the view <strong>of</strong> the a<strong>to</strong>m before Rutherford’s work?<br />
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4. What does Rutherford discover?<br />
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5. How does this help the underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>of</strong> the periodic table?<br />
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6. Why would <strong>Meitner</strong> be suited <strong>to</strong> working as an X-ray nurse?<br />
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7. When <strong>Meitner</strong> is given her own section, what is she working on?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
8. What do they name element 91?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
13
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
9. What research are Hahn <strong>and</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> doing at the time <strong>of</strong> Hitler’s rise in popularity?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
10. What was James Chadwick’s discovery?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
11. What did Fermi do in Rome? What was created by this reaction? What was his first hypothesis <strong>to</strong><br />
explain these new substances?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
12. What do the scientists in Berlin think happens when the Uranium nucleus is bombarded with a<br />
neutron? What 2 wrong assumptions is this hypothesis based on?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
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13. Irene Curie discovers a new substance. How does she do this? How does she detect the substance?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
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<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
14. What do Hahn <strong>and</strong> Strassman think it is? Why don’t they think it could be Barium even though its<br />
properties suggest it is?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
15. What method does Hahn use <strong>to</strong> try <strong>to</strong> find Radium? Does this work?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
16. What do they conclude? Why is it so hard for them <strong>to</strong> accept?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
17. How do <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Robert Frisch explain the presence <strong>of</strong> Barium using Bohr’s model <strong>of</strong> the<br />
nucleus? What happens when they add up the mass <strong>of</strong> the residues?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
18. What dawned on them on Christmas Eve?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
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19. How did the 1944 Award <strong>of</strong> the Nobel Prize <strong>to</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn “skew his<strong>to</strong>ry”?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
15
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
20. Why does <strong>Meitner</strong> say Hahn did not deserve all the credit for the discovery <strong>of</strong> <strong>Fission</strong>?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
21. What posthumous honour is bes<strong>to</strong>wed on <strong>Meitner</strong>?<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
_______________________________________________________________________________<br />
16
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
After Viewing the Program<br />
General Activities:<br />
1. <strong>Meitner</strong> was not the only scientist <strong>to</strong> escape the Nazis. Find out about Bohr’s escape.<br />
2. How did nuclear fission change his<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>and</strong> effect global politics? What was the Cold War?<br />
3. Watch the movies ‘Cabaret’ or ‘Blue Angel’ <strong>and</strong> find out more about life in Germany before the<br />
Second World War.<br />
4. Write a short s<strong>to</strong>ry based on one <strong>of</strong> the incidents described in the program such as <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong>’s<br />
escape from Germany, the night <strong>of</strong> broken glass or her first day in Berlin or S<strong>to</strong>ckholm.<br />
5. Find out more about the life <strong>of</strong> Hitler <strong>and</strong> what he wrote in “Mein Kampf”.<br />
6. <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> was not the only woman who didn’t get a Nobel Prize that many say she deserved.<br />
Find out about Rosalind Franklin.<br />
Science Activities:<br />
1. Make a list <strong>of</strong> all the scientists mentioned in the program <strong>and</strong> divide in<strong>to</strong> groups <strong>to</strong> find out about<br />
their work. Make a quick poster <strong>to</strong> report back <strong>to</strong> the class.<br />
2. Find out about the gases used in WW1.<br />
3. How many elements are named after scientists mentioned in this program? Find out a little about<br />
these elements.<br />
4. Find out how fractional crystallisation was used in the research.<br />
5. What kinds <strong>of</strong> a<strong>to</strong>mic bombs are there? What kind <strong>of</strong> bomb did the Manhattan Project lead <strong>to</strong>?<br />
6. What is Quantum mechanics?<br />
7. Is the equation for the fission <strong>of</strong> Uranium always the same?<br />
17
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
Suggested Student Responses<br />
General Questions:<br />
1. Which Scientists are pictured as those working at the University <strong>of</strong> Berlin.?<br />
Albert Einstein, Gustav Hertz, Max Planck, James Franck <strong>and</strong> Max von Laue.<br />
2. Where does <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> come from <strong>and</strong> who does she work under in Berlin?<br />
She is Austrian <strong>and</strong> received her PhD in Physics from the University <strong>of</strong> Vienna in 1906. She<br />
works under Max Planck.<br />
3. What is Hahn’s his<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>and</strong> who does he come <strong>to</strong> work with in Berlin?<br />
He graduated in Chemistry from the University <strong>of</strong> Marburg in Germany <strong>and</strong> worked at<br />
McGill University in Montreal, Canada, under Ernest Rutherford before coming back <strong>to</strong><br />
Germany <strong>to</strong> work under the chemist Emile Fischer.<br />
4. What is Fischer’s <strong>and</strong> the other male scientists’ attitude <strong>to</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong>? How are women students<br />
treated generally at this time?<br />
Fischer would not let her work in the labora<strong>to</strong>ry in case she set her hair on fire. She worked<br />
in a room in the basement with a separate entrance. She received no salary <strong>and</strong> was ignored<br />
by the other scientists except Hahn.<br />
5. What are Hahn <strong>and</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> studying?<br />
Every known substance that is a Beta emitter, <strong>and</strong> they discover several new ones.<br />
6. What is the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute? What are the roles <strong>of</strong> Fischer, Hahn <strong>and</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong>?<br />
A privately endowed institute, with a chemistry institute within it, in Berlin. It allows <strong>to</strong>p<br />
German scientists <strong>to</strong> work at an international level. Fischer is in charge <strong>of</strong> the chemistry<br />
institute <strong>and</strong> <strong>of</strong>fers Hahn a paid position as a scientific associate with the title <strong>of</strong> pr<strong>of</strong>essor.<br />
<strong>Meitner</strong> is expected <strong>to</strong> work with him but her status is unpaid guest.<br />
7. What happens <strong>to</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> in 1912? In 1913?<br />
In 1912 she is made Max Planck’s assistant, assigned <strong>to</strong> marking his papers, <strong>and</strong> in 1913 she<br />
is finally promoted by Fischer <strong>to</strong> scientific associate, equal in status <strong>to</strong> Hahn but receiving a<br />
much smaller salary.<br />
8. What is Rutherford’s exciting discovery?<br />
Rutherford discovers that the a<strong>to</strong>m is not a shapeless globule, as was formerly thought, but<br />
has a tiny, but massive , nucleus that is positively charged surrounded by a wispy cloud <strong>of</strong><br />
negatively charged electrons.<br />
9. What is “the long awaited excuse for war”?<br />
<strong>The</strong> assassination <strong>of</strong> Archduke Ferdin<strong>and</strong> in Sarajevo by a Bosnian Serb nationalist.<br />
10. What were the international laws about the use <strong>of</strong> gas in war? What happened <strong>to</strong> Hahn’s scruples?<br />
International laws forbade the use <strong>of</strong> poisoned weapons. His mind was numbed by the<br />
senselessness <strong>of</strong> war , until he no longer had any scruples about the whole thing.<br />
11. What is <strong>Meitner</strong>’s contribution <strong>to</strong> the war effort? What are her impressions?<br />
She volunteers as an X-ray nurse- technician with the Austrian army <strong>and</strong> is quickly sent <strong>to</strong> a<br />
military hospital near the Russian front. She was amazed at how bad it was, how much<br />
suffering there was <strong>and</strong> that the best result for many would be <strong>to</strong> be crippled.<br />
12. Why did <strong>Meitner</strong> comment that Einstein was a curiosity?<br />
She thought his comments were naïve <strong>and</strong> that he was peculiar in his political views <strong>and</strong> she<br />
found that an educated person who never picked up a newspaper in those times <strong>to</strong> be a<br />
curiosity.<br />
18
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
13. How is <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Hahn’s working relationship changed in 1917? Could the war have been a<br />
fac<strong>to</strong>r in this?<br />
<strong>The</strong>y have equal status in the Hahn-<strong>Meitner</strong> labora<strong>to</strong>ry. She has almost equal salary <strong>to</strong><br />
Hahn <strong>and</strong> she can direct her own work in her own section. She had run the lab during the<br />
war without Hahn <strong>and</strong> perhaps this could not be ignored by Fischer.<br />
14. What are conditions like in Germany after the war?<br />
Much <strong>of</strong> Europe is devastated <strong>and</strong> there are uprisings against the new Weimar government.<br />
<strong>The</strong>re is uncontrolled inflation, massive unemployment <strong>and</strong> lack <strong>of</strong> essential goods. People<br />
are hungry <strong>and</strong> starvation, influenza, cholera <strong>and</strong> typhoid claim many lives. At the height <strong>of</strong><br />
inflation people bring their salaries home in wheel carts. <strong>The</strong>re are fuel shortages <strong>and</strong><br />
uprisings.<br />
15. Under what circumstances does Hitler write “Mein Kampf”?<br />
Hitler is the leader <strong>of</strong> the National Socialists <strong>and</strong> he is jailed after a Putsch attempt in<br />
Munich. He is imprisoned long enough <strong>to</strong> write the book <strong>and</strong> emerges from prison a hero.<br />
16. What is life like in Berlin between 1924 <strong>and</strong> the s<strong>to</strong>ck market crash?<br />
Life is easier, social projects <strong>and</strong> easy money characterise Berlin. <strong>The</strong>re is also a cultural<br />
revolution taking place, with a glittering nightlife, characterised by people such as Ber<strong>to</strong>lt<br />
Brecht <strong>and</strong> Marlene Dietrich, bringing music, theatre <strong>and</strong> cabaret.<br />
17. List the consequences <strong>of</strong> Hitler’s appointment <strong>to</strong> power.<br />
Hitler dismantles the constitutional government, the Reichstag is burnt down, thous<strong>and</strong>s <strong>of</strong><br />
political prisoners are arrested <strong>and</strong> sent <strong>to</strong> concentration camps, many <strong>to</strong> Dachau.<br />
18. What are Plank’s <strong>and</strong> Hahn’s attitudes <strong>to</strong> the National Socialist government?<br />
<strong>The</strong>y are appalled by National Socialist excesses , especially the attitude <strong>to</strong> Jews , but their<br />
greatest concern is <strong>to</strong> protect their scientific institutions so the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute fly<br />
the Swastika, use Heil Hitler as a greeting <strong>and</strong> praise the Reich in reports, adhere <strong>to</strong> policy<br />
<strong>and</strong> compromise on the rest. <strong>The</strong>y welcome the extra funding for scientific military research<br />
<strong>and</strong> the increased prestige.<br />
19. What happens <strong>to</strong> Jewish scientists in 1933? What about <strong>Meitner</strong>? Why was she reluctant <strong>to</strong> leave<br />
Germany? How was her pr<strong>of</strong>essional life restricted?<br />
<strong>The</strong> law for the res<strong>to</strong>ration <strong>of</strong> the pr<strong>of</strong>essional civil service is enacted, expelling all Jews from<br />
the public service. <strong>The</strong> Kaiser Wilhelm Institute is private, yet many Jews are fired, but not<br />
<strong>Meitner</strong>. She was reluctant <strong>to</strong> leave as she had built up her Institute from its beginnings <strong>and</strong><br />
her social <strong>and</strong> emotional supports were all in Berlin. She is dismissed from her teaching<br />
position at the University <strong>of</strong> Berlin, is no longer invited <strong>to</strong> attend conferences or deliver<br />
papers.<br />
20. Retrospectively how did she feel about her decision <strong>to</strong> stay?<br />
She felt she had committed a great moral wrong by not leaving in 1933, because staying had<br />
the result <strong>of</strong> supporting Hitlerism.<br />
21. Whose work led <strong>to</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> establishing the Uranium project? How long did she work on these<br />
elusive new elements?<br />
Enrico Fermi’s work. <strong>The</strong>y worked on these elements for four years.<br />
22. What event changed her future in Germany? What consequence did the event have for her<br />
personally?<br />
German troops marching in<strong>to</strong> Austria in 1938. All Austrians became German citizens so<br />
<strong>Meitner</strong>’s Austrian passport <strong>and</strong> citizenship no longer protected her.<br />
23. What was the German government’s reason for not giving <strong>Meitner</strong> a passport?<br />
<strong>The</strong>y cited political reasons, thinking she may use her name <strong>and</strong> experience against<br />
Germany.<br />
19
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
24. Why was <strong>Lise</strong>’s escape so fraught with danger? Where did she go <strong>to</strong> work? Was this a satisfac<strong>to</strong>ry<br />
move for her?<br />
All scientists had been forbidden from leaving Germany, <strong>and</strong> if she tried <strong>to</strong> cross the border<br />
she could be arrested or worse. She goes <strong>to</strong> the new Nobel Institute for Experimental Physics<br />
devoted <strong>to</strong> nuclear research in Sweden, where she is isolated <strong>and</strong> ignored.<br />
25. What was the night <strong>of</strong> broken glass? Why must Hahn keep his meeting with <strong>Meitner</strong> in<br />
Copenhagen a secret?<br />
It is the beginning <strong>of</strong> an organised pogrom against the Jews in Germany. <strong>The</strong> political<br />
situation is worse <strong>and</strong> it may be dangerous for him <strong>to</strong> be associating with a Jew.<br />
26. Hahn repeats his experiments until there is only one possible conclusion. What is that conclusion?<br />
Does he underst<strong>and</strong> the result? Who comes up with an explanation?<br />
<strong>The</strong> only possible conclusion is that Uranium has changed in<strong>to</strong> radioactive Barium. He can’t<br />
underst<strong>and</strong> this <strong>and</strong> turns <strong>to</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> for an explanation. She <strong>and</strong> her nephew Ot<strong>to</strong> Robert<br />
Frisch come up with the explanation.<br />
27. What is the significance <strong>of</strong> the separate publications? Why is <strong>Meitner</strong> surprised by Hahn’s attitude<br />
<strong>to</strong> the discovery?<br />
<strong>The</strong> chemistry <strong>and</strong> experimental work is in one publication <strong>and</strong> the theory <strong>and</strong> explanation<br />
is in another. <strong>Meitner</strong> underst<strong>and</strong>s that she has been excluded from the discovery. He<br />
distances himself from her <strong>and</strong> does not acknowledge her role for his own safety.<br />
28. Why isn’t his attitude surprising? What is fission <strong>to</strong> Hahn?<br />
It isn’t surprising because <strong>of</strong> the political climate in Germany. To Hahn, fission is heaven<br />
sent <strong>and</strong> ensures his political safety.<br />
29. What event triggers the declaration <strong>of</strong> the Second World War? What happens in fission research in<br />
Germany? In Engl<strong>and</strong>? In the USA?<br />
<strong>The</strong> German invasion <strong>of</strong> Pol<strong>and</strong>. <strong>The</strong> German government immediately institutes a secret<br />
project <strong>to</strong> research the military applications <strong>of</strong> nuclear fission. In Engl<strong>and</strong>, Ot<strong>to</strong> Robert<br />
Frisch <strong>and</strong> other physicists do research that indicate a nuclear bomb would not be<br />
impossible <strong>to</strong> make. In America, Einstein writes <strong>to</strong> Roosevelt <strong>and</strong> warns him that the<br />
German scientists will have done the same calculations, so the President warns the military<br />
<strong>and</strong> the Manhattan Project is the result.<br />
30. What is <strong>Meitner</strong>’s response <strong>to</strong> an invitation <strong>to</strong> work on the bomb?<br />
She says no.<br />
31. Briefly describe letters between <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Hahn when the full extent <strong>of</strong> Nazi atrocities are<br />
revealed at the end <strong>of</strong> the war.<br />
She said that he had worked for Nazi Germany without trying passive resistance <strong>and</strong><br />
millions <strong>of</strong> people had been murdered <strong>and</strong> there was no protest. She said he had first<br />
betrayed his friends , then his men <strong>and</strong> then his children by letting them give their lives in a<br />
criminal war, so in the end he had betrayed Germany. She accused him <strong>of</strong> not seeing what<br />
happened <strong>to</strong> the Jews , as his position was safe. He said that everyone knew Hitler was<br />
responsible for the War <strong>and</strong> worldwide unspeakable misery, but he said there should be<br />
some sympathy for the German people, as one cannot do anything <strong>to</strong> counter a terror regime<br />
32. How did Bohr try <strong>to</strong> set the record straight after Hahn’s Nobel Prize? Who made sure the award<br />
didn’t happen?<br />
He nominated <strong>Meitner</strong> for the Nobel Prize in Physics. Siegbahn made sure the award didn’t<br />
happen.<br />
33. Why was Hahn “their Man”?<br />
He was relatively untainted by German actions during the war, <strong>and</strong> with a Nobel Prize he<br />
could give prestige back <strong>to</strong> German science.<br />
34. What is <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong>’s epitaph?<br />
“A physicist who never lost her humanity.”<br />
20
<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
Science Questions:<br />
1. Do you recognise any <strong>of</strong> the scientists working at the University <strong>of</strong> Berlin? Why are they known<br />
<strong>to</strong> you?<br />
Albert Einstein, theory <strong>of</strong> relativity Gustav Hertz <strong>and</strong> James Franck, laws governing the<br />
impact <strong>of</strong> an electron on an a<strong>to</strong>m, Max Planck, Quantum mechanics <strong>and</strong> Planck’s constant,<br />
<strong>and</strong> Max von Laue, X-ray crystallography.<br />
2. What is a beta emitter?<br />
A substance that emits beta particles.<br />
3. What is the view <strong>of</strong> the a<strong>to</strong>m before Rutherford’s work?<br />
A shapeless globule.<br />
4. What does Rutherford discover?<br />
That an a<strong>to</strong>m has a tiny, but massive , nucleus with a positive charge that is surrounded by a<br />
wispy cloud <strong>of</strong> electrons.<br />
5. How does this help the underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>of</strong> the periodic table?<br />
Scientists now underst<strong>and</strong> that the number <strong>of</strong> an element in the Periodic table corresponds<br />
with the positive charge on its nucleus.<br />
6. Why would <strong>Meitner</strong> be suited <strong>to</strong> working as an X-ray nurse-technician?<br />
She would have an underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>of</strong> radiation from her work in Physics.<br />
7. When <strong>Meitner</strong> is given her own section, what is she working on?<br />
Finding the element between Thorium <strong>and</strong> Uranium, numbered 91.<br />
8. What do they name element 91?<br />
Protactinium.<br />
9. What research are Hahn <strong>and</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> doing at the time <strong>of</strong> Hitler’s rise in popularity?<br />
<strong>Meitner</strong> is working on the process <strong>of</strong> radioactive decay <strong>and</strong> the behaviour <strong>of</strong> the nucleus, <strong>and</strong><br />
Hahn stays in radiochemistry. <strong>The</strong>y are both leaders in their fields.<br />
10. What was James Chadwick’s discovery?<br />
He discovered a suba<strong>to</strong>mic particle with no charge, which was named the neutron.<br />
11. What did Fermi do in Rome? What was created by this reaction? What was his first hypothesis <strong>to</strong><br />
explain these new substances?<br />
He bombards Uranium nuclei with neutrons. This created many new reactions <strong>and</strong><br />
substances. He suggested these new substances might be elements beyond Uranium.<br />
12. What do the scientists in Berlin think happens when the Uranium nucleus is bombarded with a<br />
neutron? What 2 wrong assumptions is this hypothesis based on?<br />
<strong>The</strong>y think the neutron is absorbed in<strong>to</strong> the nucleus <strong>to</strong> create element 94, <strong>and</strong> then element<br />
95 is created the same way. <strong>The</strong>y wrongly assume that changes <strong>to</strong> the nucleus must be small,<br />
that there can’t be a massive disintegration <strong>of</strong> a nucleus <strong>and</strong> they also assume chemical<br />
properties for element 94 <strong>and</strong> 95, which they don’t have.<br />
13. Irene Curie discovers a new substance. How does she do this? How does she detect the substance?<br />
She discovers small amounts <strong>of</strong> a substance, produced by the irradiation <strong>of</strong> Uranium with<br />
neutrons. It can only be detected with a Geiger counter, <strong>and</strong> it behaves like Barium.<br />
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<strong>The</strong> <strong>Path</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Fission</strong> – <strong>The</strong> S<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> <strong>Lise</strong> <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn<br />
14. What do Hahn <strong>and</strong> Strassman think it is? Why don’t they think it could be Barium, even though its<br />
properties suggest it is?<br />
<strong>The</strong>y think it must be Radium, as they think only small changes <strong>to</strong> the nucleus are possible.<br />
15. What method does Hahn use <strong>to</strong> try <strong>to</strong> find Radium? Does this work?<br />
Fractional crystallisation or fractionation.<br />
16. What do they conclude? Why is it so hard for them <strong>to</strong> accept?<br />
Uranium has produced radioactive Barium. <strong>The</strong>y can’t accept that Uranium could change<br />
in<strong>to</strong> something as small as Barium.<br />
17. How do <strong>Meitner</strong> <strong>and</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Robert Frisch explain the presence <strong>of</strong> Barium, using Bohr’s model <strong>of</strong><br />
the nucleus? What happens when they add up the mass <strong>of</strong> the residues?<br />
That the nucleus was like a drop, as Bohr suggested, <strong>and</strong> is elongated <strong>and</strong> split in<strong>to</strong> barium<br />
<strong>and</strong> Kryp<strong>to</strong>n, but their calculations showed that the 2 new nuclei would add up <strong>to</strong> a mass<br />
lighter than the uranium nucleus.<br />
18. What dawned on them on Christmas Eve?<br />
<strong>The</strong>y then calculated the amount <strong>of</strong> energy locked in the nucleus <strong>of</strong> Uranium <strong>to</strong> be 200,000<br />
electron volts. <strong>The</strong>y thought about the relationship between energy <strong>and</strong> mass <strong>and</strong><br />
remembered Einstein’s theoretical equation E=mc 2 , <strong>and</strong> then it all added up. <strong>The</strong> missing<br />
mass was converted <strong>to</strong> energy.<br />
19. How did the 1944 Award <strong>of</strong> the Nobel Prize <strong>to</strong> Ot<strong>to</strong> Hahn “skew his<strong>to</strong>ry”?<br />
<strong>The</strong> prize was given for chemistry, but physics was used <strong>to</strong> interpret the results, so it was an<br />
interdisciplinary discovery.<br />
20. Why does <strong>Meitner</strong> say Hahn did not deserve all the credit for the discovery <strong>of</strong> fission?<br />
She said that Hahn deserved the prize in chemistry, but that she <strong>and</strong> Frisch had contribute d<br />
something not insignificant <strong>to</strong> the clarification <strong>of</strong> the process <strong>of</strong> nuclear fission, how it<br />
originates <strong>and</strong> how it produces so much energy <strong>and</strong> that this was something very remote<br />
from Hahn.<br />
21. What posthumous honour is bes<strong>to</strong>wed on <strong>Meitner</strong>?<br />
Element number 109 is named <strong>Meitner</strong>ium for her, when it is created at the Heavy element<br />
research Centre in Darmstadt Germany in 1989<br />
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