J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967) was an American theoretical physicist. During the Manhattan Project, Oppenheimer was director of the Los Alamos laboratory and responsible for the research and design of an atomic bomb. He is often referred to as the "father of the atomic bomb".

When the Manhattan Project was launched in the autumn of 1942, Oppenheimer was already considered an outstanding theoretical physicist and had become heavily involved in exploring the possibility of an atomic bomb. Throughout the previous year, he had been researching fast neutrons, calculating the amount of material needed to make a bomb and its effectiveness.

Although Oppenheimer had little management experience and had previously been associated with Communist causes, General Leslie Groves recognized his exceptional scientific talent. Less than three years after Groves chose Oppenheimer to head weapons development, the U.S. dropped two atomic bombs on Japan. As director of the Los Alamos laboratory, Oppenheimer proved to be an extraordinary choice.

This document is an opening conference in English at the Rencontres internationales de Genève. It took place in 1964. The RIG were devoted to the theme of "How to live tomorrow". The title of Robert Oppenheimer's talk in English is "The Intimate and the Common".