Science Goes to War: The Search for the Ultimate Weapon, from Greek Fire to Star Wars
- Book Review,
by Ernest Volkman
From Book News, Inc.
Since the days of the ancient Greek city-states, explorations in science have been sponsored by the state to be put at the service of war. A former journalist specializing in national security issues for Newsday, Volkman surveys this dynamic in this popular history of scientific "accomplishments" in warfare, from the physical characteristics of the English longbow to the creation of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons by the United States and other countries.Copyright © 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Review
"...this compelling, frightening and important book makes it clear..." (Focus, October 2002)
Review
"...this compelling, frightening and important book makes it clear..." (Focus, October 2002)
Book Description
"It was a thing blameworthy, shameful and barbarous, worthy of severe punishment before God and Man, to wish to bring to perfection an art damageable to one's neighbor and destructive to the human race."
This anguished statement from the fifteenth-century Italian mathematician known as Tartaglia, who created the science of ballistics, might have come from any one of thousands of brilliant scientists who, throughout history, have applied their genius to the art of war. Every advance in weaponry from the bronze sword to the stealth bomber has been the product of science, and it is likely that without the pressure of war, science as we know it would not exist.
Science Goes to War examines the moral dilemmas, knotty technological problems, and pragmatic necessities that have punctuated the inseparable histories of science and warfare. This remarkably comprehensive volume recounts the 4,000-year quest for the ultimate weapon and reveals how this eternal arms race has both exploited and contributed to "pure" science. Highlights among the many compelling stories in Science Goes to War include:
* Archimedes and the defense of Syracuse
* Galileo and the first military R&D laboratory
* Emperor Meiji and the technological transformation of Japan
* The Manhattan Project
Book Info
Examines the moral dilemmas, knotty technological problems, and pragmatic necessities that have punctuated the inseparable histories of science and warfare.
From the Inside Flap
For as long as humans have waged war, generals have turned to science in their quest for ever-more-terrible weapons, from the war chariot to the armored tank, from the catapult to the cruise missile. And from Archimedes to Oppenheimer, the scientists who developed these engines of destruction have been horrified, inspired, supported, and revolted by their military creations. In Science Goes to War, award-winning journalist Ernest Volkman traces the long, often contentious relationship between science and warfare. Beginning with the Assyrians, who established the first military R&D program more than 3,000 years ago, Volkman details the never-ending search for the ultimate weapon. He examines the military research of history’s most renowned scientists and explains the military significance of many nonmilitary inventions, such as the printing press, the compass, and canned food. Why did so many scientists, many of whom were appalled by the very thought of war, dedicate their talents to the development of war technology? Volkman explores the frighteningly symbiotic links between science and war and reveals the motivations behind the military research of such major figures as Galileo, Heisenberg, and many more. Brimming with human drama and technological detail, Science Goes to War tells the fascinating stories behind the development of the longbow, the cannon, the machine gun, the atomic bomb, and countless other "ultimate" weapons. This meticulously researched, engagingly written account casts new light on the complex relationship between brainpower and firepower.
Back Cover Copy
"It was a thing blameworthy, shameful and barbarous, worthy of severe punishment before God and Man, to wish to bring to perfection an art damageable to one’s neighbor and destructive to the human race." This anguished statement from the fifteenth-century Italian mathematician known as Tartaglia, who created the science of ballistics, might have come from any one of thousands of brilliant scientists who, throughout history, have applied their genius to the art of war. Every advance in weaponry from the bronze sword to the stealth bomber has been the product of science, and it is likely that without the pressure of war, science as we know it would not exist. Science Goes to War examines the moral dilemmas, knotty technological problems, and pragmatic necessities that have punctuated the inseparable histories of science and warfare. This remarkably comprehensive volume recounts the 4,000-year quest for the ultimate weapon and reveals how this eternal arms race has both exploited and contributed to "pure" science. Highlights among the many compelling stories in Science Goes to War include: Archimedes and the defense of Syracuse Galileo and the first military R&D laboratory Emperor Meiji and the technological transformation of Japan The Manhattan Project
About the Author
ERNEST VOLKMAN is an award-winning journalist and former national correspondent for Newsday covering national security issues. He was a contributing editor for Defense Science and Military Science and Technology magazines and has written for Omni. His previous books include Spies: The Secret Agents Who Changed the Course of History and Espionage: The Greatest Spy Operations of the Twentieth Century, both published by Wiley.
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