When the first atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, physicist Albert Einstein was at his summer cottage in upstate New York, near Lake Saranac. Sixteen hours after pilot Paul Tibbets opened the hatch doors of the Enola Gay to release the first atomic bomb ever used against another country, U.S. President Harry S. Truman issued a prepared statement that was broadcast on radio stations across the United States.
At the time of the announcement, Einstein was taking a nap, but his secretary, Helen Dukas, had the radio on. When Einstein entered the room, it was Dukas who delivered the news. He fought back a deep sadness, then spoke two words in German: ¡°Oh weh.¡±
Various translations exist: ¡°Alas.¡± ¡°Woe is me.¡± ¡°Oh my God.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s that.¡± Literally, the phrase is used to express profound pain. The news had affected him deeply.
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