Detonate: Explosives, Nitrates, and the Making of the Modern World (Cape of Good Hope Series)

Name: Detonate: Explosives, Nitrates, and the Making of the Modern World (Cape of Good Hope Series)
Author: Stephen R. Bowen

引爆：炸药、硝酸盐和现代世界的形成（好望角丛书）

by Stephen R. Bowen (史蒂芬·R.鲍恩)

Status: Completed
Length: 150k Words
Genre: Historical
Updated: 1y ago
Source: Fanqie

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Synopsis

A history of explosives, and, more than that, a history of humanity's contradictions and struggles. A featured selection of the Scientific American Book Club and the History Book Club. From the dawn of civilization, people longed to harness the destructive power of fire, but it was not until the 1860s that humanity truly entered the age of explosives. With extraordinary intuition, Alfred Nobel transformed the world through his development of explosives. They made possible enormous projects that reshaped the planet, but also caused countless deaths and irreparable, immeasurable damage to the environment. Amid this upheaval, Nobel became one of the richest men in the world, yet the consequences troubled him. In the end, he used his entire fortune to establish the celebrated prizes that bear his name: the Nobel Prizes.

As explosive consumption surged, nations around the world fiercely competed for the scarce natural resource known as saltpeter. In the 19th century, saltpeter was arguably as valuable as oil in the 21st century: both lay at the heart of international competition and power struggles. To free Germany from resource constraints, scientist Fritz Haber solved the technical challenge of fixing nitrogen artificially. This breakthrough laid the foundation for the Green Revolution and enabled enormous population growth. During the war, Haber also developed poison gas and came to be regarded as the father of chemical warfare. For that reason, when he received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, the international community responded with outrage and condemnation.

This is a story about humanity, encompassing its obsession with science, its disregard for morality, and the inherent irony of history. It shows how people can unleash astonishing creativity during wartime, while warning us that history is cyclical and that solutions from the past often create new problems that urgently need to be solved.

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20Chapters

278Reads

9.3Score

121Shelves

16Listens

33.6kReads · all time

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