Rating: 
Summary: My Own Opinion
Review: A dry and rather tedious read. Poorly written and edited account of a man who wanted to remain in the background and in obscurity and probably should have been left there. This had all the makings of a great story; millionaire scientist, secret war research, cheating husband, suicide and even a diaper truck...but falls flat. The minor story of the authors relative is more interesting but both stories are lost as this is more of a "who was who" during WWII wall street. Reads like a prospectus.
Rating: 
Summary: A Great Facilitator
Review: A fascinating story about a fascinating man and his behind-the-scenes accomplishments. He had enormous wealth and social cachet, he had the curiosity of a true science buff, he had great managerial and entrepreneurial ability, and he had almost limitless powers of persuasion, . On top of all that he had a commanding appearance, so handsome that Liam Neeson must surely play him in the movie. (Too bad that he seems to have been an utter cad in his private life.)
His history has been engagingly told by Jennet Conant, grandaughter of the "pasty-faced apothecary" who once ruled Harvard and contributed mightily to the Manhattan Project. If I give the book fewer than five stars, it is because I am less than persuaded by Ms. Conant's starry-eyed characterization of Loomis as a physicist. He was a gifted tinkerer or gadgeteer in the classical mode, and he was a great facilitator of physics and physicists, but he was not himself a physicist. And the reason is that he does not seem to have known any higher mathematics, without which the practice of modern physics is impossible. Consider for example, Chapter 3, which deals with the decade of the 1920's, the years in which the foundations of quantum mechanics were being laid. Yet the words 'quantum mechanics' do not appear anywhere in the text of this chapter or in the index. I find it impossible to regard as a true physicist a man who was apparently indifferent to the greatest revolution in physics since Newton.
In particular, despite Ms. Conant, he will not bear comparison with the greatest of all science amateurs, John William Strutt, Third Baron of Rayleigh. Like Lord Rayleigh, Loomis was a talented experimentalist. The difference is that Lord Rayleigh was not merely an experimentalist but also an applied mathematician of genius, and his extraordinary analytical skills underlie all his work. After reading the book, one wonders whether Loomis would have known the meaning of div v = 0.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting figure, good writing, but patience is required
Review: About halfway through the book a question was raised in my mind; is this man the greatest patron of the sciences since the beginning of the industrial revolution? Conant offers an excellent portrayal of this dynamic and seemingly brillant man who excelled in every endeavor he undertook. From law to financing a significant portion of the utility industry to almost every area of physics, Loomis combined his passion, his efforts, his money and his contacts to work at the highest levels.I was constantly amazed at how he juggled all of his demands, but kept asking why had I not heard of him before? Ulitimately it is because Loomis sought not the limelight for himself, but for the creation of new and better inventions that would serve others. Yes he has an oversized ego, but he was more concerned with creating products than receiving credit. My one fault is that the book seemed slow in pace, yet it was still exciting. I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in science, technology and even WWII. Thank you Ms. Conant.
Rating: 
Summary: A very poorly written story
Review: After reading a very positive review of this book, I was surprised at how pooly written and edited it is. The story telling is choppy, at best. The author has somehow managed to take a very interesting time in world history and some very interesting people and turn them into a very boring story. To make matters worse, technical terms and jargon are used with little or no explanation. I get the distinct feeling that the author herself doesn't fully understand what they mean. She certainly gives no indication that she is familiar with radar technology or nuclear physics. There is probably an interesting story to be told here. Perhaps this book will inspire someone to tell it in a more compelling, or at least coherent, fashion.
Rating:
Summary: A Double Life
Review: Alfred Lee Loomis led a double life. During the week, he brokered deals on Wall Street; weekends he worked with scientists in the basement laboratory of his Tuxedo Park home. He was probably the only man who successfully wrestled with the Wall Street crowd and managed to be elected to the National Academy of Sciences for his accomplishments in physics. Jennet Conant chronicles Loomis' rise to financial stardom during the twenties by selling the debt of rapidly expanding public utilities; his premonition of the crash in time to liquidate and protect his holdings and his purchase of Hilton Head Island. At the height of his influence, he retired and devoted himself to science. Surrounding himself with the most visionary minds of the twentieth century - Albert Einstein, Werner Heisenberg, James Franck, Niels Bohr and Enrico Fermi to name a few - in the basement of Tuxedo Park home. During World War II, he mobilized civilian scientists to defeat the enemy and personally bankrolled research that lead to radar detection systems which changed the war's course. Loomis understood science as a dominating force and used his fortune to attract and underwrite gifted practitioners who pushed the envelope of knowledge. Perhaps his life should serve as the model for a Wall Street that today, badly needs to re-invent itself.
Rating: 
Summary: Superb read for technohistory buffs
Review: As K-12 student I detested history because of the curriculum's obsession with names and dates associated with political figures and events. In high school I looked forward to studying the technowizardry of WW-II only to be bored with names and dates of political figures and events. If only school would teach about great movers like Alfred Loomis. Loomis is not unique in accumulating great wealth, then deploying it in support of scientific or medical research. He may be unique in having formed his self funded lab, attracting the greatest minds in physics to work there *and* sufficiently mastering the field to earn their collegial respect. Even more compelling is how much the post WW-II world owes Loomis. His unique talent for spotting crucial trends in physics (most notably the importance of microwave radar) clearly made a difference in the war's length and quite possibly in its ultimate outcome. It's clear radar's impact was far more crucial to shortening the war and ensuring allied victory than the atomic bomb despite the latter's greater notoriety. I would like to have learned more about Loomis' attitude about changing social trends in the 1950s such as civil rights and eventually women's rights. I say this because, despite being conservative and fiercely patriotic, he struck me as well ahead of his time and his bluest blooded neighbors in his open mindedness about individual merit. It's sad that history educators still fail to see the importance of science and technology on the advance of civilization. They is they still obsess on political figures, dates and places. We can thank fine writers like Jennet Conant for filling in the gaps.
Rating:
Summary: The Physics of World War II Revealed
Review: Did you know that a man's Tuxedo suit was named for the soirees at this luxurious secret palace called Tuxedo Park in New York? Up on the hill in this suburb, the top scientists of the US joined together to create technology that enabled us to triumph in World War II. Alfred Lee Loomis the protagonist in this nonfiction story that often reads like a novel gathered phyicists together to create advanced radar systems and much more. The real intrigue is behind the scene though where the gossip, the parties and the affairs show how human these brilliant men really were. Conent, a New York writer is a descendant of one of those famous men and she chronicles the era with flair and precision.
Rating:
Summary: Thank God for Alfred Loomis and Jennet Conat
Review: I am one of the few persons left alive who knew Mr. Loomis. I am in my 80's, Mr. Loomis is accurately portrayed in this fantastic work. This book was very well planned and researched. I am completely satisfied. Alfred is kindly revealed in these pages as he was, a contributor, a man of vision and most of all a man who cared to see good come out of anything to benefit people who wanted good. Alfreds interest in science was based on helping people. I also know Alfred did not want any popularity except for which was inevitable. This book was inevitable. We can give Alfred credit for helping in a huge way as victors of World War II. Read another good book that reveals a bit more especially how this science was applied to defeat the Japanese at Midway and much more, SB: 1 or God by Karl Maddox.
Rating:
Summary: Slow going
Review: I have always been fascinated by the history of the science around World War II. Some of the most important inventions of our world (radar, encryption, computers, ...) were created or spurred on in this era. Yet somehow this book manages to make what should be an exciting and fast-moving story slow and turgid. It suffers from a fault more usually found in autobiography than history/biography, namely bogging down in extended dull backstory of the principal actors before getting to the relevant subject matter. (Katherine Graham's autobiog is an even worse example, but worth wading through). This book could comfortably have been 100 pages shorter and still delivered on what its title promises.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put in down
Review: I really enjoyed this book. We watch CSPAN and the author was interviewed on "Booknotes". She was so interesting, I figured the book would be good.
Her research is clear and concise.
I grew up with people who parents worked at the RAD LAB.
Well Done.
I hope she can get another book written soon!
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