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Harold M. Agnew
Former Director Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, Former President GeneraI
Atomics, New Mexico State Senator 1955-61, Member U.S. National
Academy of Sciences, Member U,S,National Academy of Engineering,
Recipient E.O.Lawrence Award, and Enrico Fermi Award from the U,S,
Atomic Energy Commission, Scientific Advisor to the Supreme Allied
Commander Europe (NATO) 1961-1964. Flew as Scientist on Hiroshima
Mission August 6, 1945 with 509th Composite Group U. S. Army Air Corps,
Member Council of Foreign Relations, Fellow American Physical Society and
American Association for the Advancement ot Science, Adjunct Professar
University of Califarnia San Diega. I received a B.A. in chemistry from the U
of Oenver in 1942 and a Masters and Ph. D. from the U ot Chicago in 1949
(under Fermi).

Abstract: Documents on Fermi's life
In January 1942 I went to the University of Chicago to join the Manhattan
Project . I was immediately sent to Columbia University to work with Enrico
Fermi When I first met him the only unusual thing that I noticed was that ali of
his pants pockets had zippers. Ali four of them. At the time he was conducting
experiments using a large pile of graphite. The structure was entirely
encapsulated with a sheet metal cover and was evacuated using mechanical

vacumn pumps. The pile had a radium berrylium neutron sourse at its center
and we measured the slowing down of the neutrons using indium foils which
were activated by the source's neutrons. We would insert the foils at different
levels in the pile for a specific time, then remove them and run about 100ft to
the counting room where there was a set of Geiger counters. We did this hour
after hour for about 10 hours each day. Fermi not only directed the work but
actually took on a shift the same as the rest of uso Inserting the foils, running
to the counting room with the activated foils and then taking the data. He was
one of uso This always distinguished Fermi.He c1early was a genius but acted
with no pretentiousness. He was a very unassuming person. He had a
wonderful sense of humor.