News Release

CHAPEL HILL -- Dr. Alan D. Beyerchen, associate professor of history at Ohio State University, will discuss the role of Dr. Werner Heisenberg and other nuclear physicists under Adolf Hitler’s regime for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s upcoming 2004-2005 Hillard Gold ’39 Lecture.

"Heisenberg and the German Physics Community Under the Third Reich" will be held at 4 p.m. Feb. 3 in the Kresge Foundation Common Room (039) of the James M. Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence in Graham Memorial.

The lecture, which is free to the public, is part of a series of events developed by the Johnston Center to explore the themes of Michael Frayn’s award-winning play, "Copenhagen." PlayMakers Repertory Co. is presenting the play at UNC’s Center for Dramatic Art now through Feb. 13.

The play centers on a 1941 meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark, between Heisenberg, who led Germany’s nuclear fission research during World War II, and his mentor Dr. Niels Bohr, considered by many to be the father of modern atomic physics.

Heisenberg was the founder of quantum mechanics and the uncertainty principle in quantum theory. The conversation between the renowned researcher and his influential teacher may have been a crucial moment in determining the outcome of the war.

The Nazi rise to power posed several dilemmas to German physicists. First, their Jewish colleagues were dismissed from universities and research institutes. Second, important professional developments in physics were threatened with political interference. Third, the physics community was expected to support the war effort and, thus, advance Hitler’s war aims.

Beyerchen teaches and researches 19^th- and 20^th-century German history. He focuses on the relationships among science, technology and modern values as reflected in the economic and political developments of the time. He has written about Nazism and science, the unpredictability of warfare and the technology of racism.

His book, "Scientists Under Hitler," received an American Library Association Choice Award as an Outstanding Book of 1977.

More information about the events related to the production of "Copenhagen" is available at the Johnston Center’s Web site: www.johnstoncenter.unc.edu. "Copenhagen" ticket information is available at www.playmakersrep.org.

The Hillard Gold ’39 Lecture series was established by Carolina alumni James and Jonathan Gold as a memorial to their father and his commitment to liberal arts education. Hillard Gold lecturers interact with students both inside and outside the classroom. Beyerchen is the fifth Hillard Gold ’39 Lecturer.

- 30 -

Johnston Center contact: Dr. Randi Davenport, (919) 843-7765

News Services contact: Deb Saine, (919) 962-8415 or deborah_saine@unc.edu