Ted Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, was an American criminal who wanted the attention of the public because he opposed the use of modern technology. He did succeed, but in a violent and inhuman way: by mailing out bombs that killed 3 people and injured 23 more. This horrific series of events did not end until Kaczynski was finally arrested on April 3, 1996. Yesterday, he died in federal prison at the age of 81. The cause of his death is unknown.
Kaczynski was born on May 22, 1942, in Chicago. His father was a sausage maker, and his mother was a full-time homemaker. Even though Kaczynski was young, his brilliance was soon noticed. He skipped two grades in elementary school and a high school math teacher said Kaczynski might be the smartest student he ever taught. A few years later, Kaczynski was admitted to Harvard University and obtained a Ph.D. at the University of Michigan. He later became an associate professor of mathematics at the University of California, Berkeley.
After leaving academia, Kaczynski built a cabin in the middle of a forest in Montana, with no electricity or running water. During the 25 years that he lived there, he made trips to a nearby town called Lincoln with his carefully hand-crafted bombs hidden in plain wooden boxes. He hid the boxes in public locations and mailed other bombs all across the country.
For years, no one suspected that Kaczynski was behind these violent and dangerous attacks. However, suspicion began to grow. He sent angry and violent letters to hundreds of supporters and curiosity seekers, sometimes using the address of the J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington D.C.
He cut all ties with his family and threatened to kill them. Soon, it became clear that Kaczynski was outraged, angry, and unable to control himself. He wrote a manifesto about his feelings and how he tried to gain popularity by killing people with bombs.
After receiving tips from Kaczynski’s brother, David, who began to suspect his brother when the manifesto was published, police located his cabin and knocked on his door after posing as land surveyors. The moment Kaczynski opened the door, he was arrested by the police. They searched his house thoroughly, finding thousands of journal pages about bomb science and shelves of materials involved in building bombs. His bed frame held a live bomb.
Kaczynski was charged with eight life sentences. Many news outlets wanted to interview him, but he turned down nearly every request and gave his first and only interview to Time. He lived the rest of his life quietly behind bars until he was found dead in his jail cell.
Kaczynski was born on May 22, 1942, in Chicago. His father was a sausage maker, and his mother was a full-time homemaker. Even though Kaczynski was young, his brilliance was soon noticed. He skipped two grades in elementary school and a high school math teacher said Kaczynski might be the smartest student he ever taught. A few years later, Kaczynski was admitted to Harvard University and obtained a Ph.D. at the University of Michigan. He later became an associate professor of mathematics at the University of California, Berkeley.
After leaving academia, Kaczynski built a cabin in the middle of a forest in Montana, with no electricity or running water. During the 25 years that he lived there, he made trips to a nearby town called Lincoln with his carefully hand-crafted bombs hidden in plain wooden boxes. He hid the boxes in public locations and mailed other bombs all across the country.
For years, no one suspected that Kaczynski was behind these violent and dangerous attacks. However, suspicion began to grow. He sent angry and violent letters to hundreds of supporters and curiosity seekers, sometimes using the address of the J. Edgar Hoover Building in Washington D.C.
He cut all ties with his family and threatened to kill them. Soon, it became clear that Kaczynski was outraged, angry, and unable to control himself. He wrote a manifesto about his feelings and how he tried to gain popularity by killing people with bombs.
After receiving tips from Kaczynski’s brother, David, who began to suspect his brother when the manifesto was published, police located his cabin and knocked on his door after posing as land surveyors. The moment Kaczynski opened the door, he was arrested by the police. They searched his house thoroughly, finding thousands of journal pages about bomb science and shelves of materials involved in building bombs. His bed frame held a live bomb.
Kaczynski was charged with eight life sentences. Many news outlets wanted to interview him, but he turned down nearly every request and gave his first and only interview to Time. He lived the rest of his life quietly behind bars until he was found dead in his jail cell.
