Did anyone (in U.S.) happen to see the play "Copenhagen" on television on PBS? It was very good! A good history of the philosophy of physics as it details the meeting of Heisenberg and Bohr in Copenhagen in 1941.
Some of the themes of quantum mechanics were playfully exchanged in the dialogue and action. The playwright tried to extend the philosophical ideas behind the physics to the inner workings of the characters' emotions and relationships. These ideas were also illustrated with novel cinematographic techniques and dialogue.
All in all, an entertaining lesson in philosophy, physics, and history.
The ghosts of Heisenberg, Bohr and Bohr's wife are somewhere in eternity discussing the real reason for Heisenberg's visit to Bohr during the war. Turns out that Germany could have had the bomb much sooner than was expected had Heisenberg done the diffusion equation on U235. Apparently he never did and his calculations on U238 led him to believe that 20 times as much uranium would be needed to reach a critical mass. The play explores the psychological reasons behind this omission and the break up in the relationship between Heisenberg and Bohr that resulted from this meeting.
I don't know how historically accurate it was, but it seemed well researched.
Here is the link that will tell you more.
http://www.pbs.org/hollywoodpresents/copenhagen/
JJB
