Dedicated military buffs will appreciate this avalanche of information, but average readers may learn more about the Air...
Readers of veteran aviation writer Boyne will know what to expect in this update of The Wild Blue (1998): an enthusiastic account of American air power, rich in personal anecdotes as well as descriptions of weaponry, battle action, political infighting and important air force figures, but light on criticism.
The author tells an impressive success story. Having hastily demobilized after 1945, America endowed the newly independent Air Force with aging World War II aircraft and weapons plus a share of a declining military budget. Its only abundant resource turned out to be talented leaders, but these proved critical as they guided their service through three great transformations, beginning with reliance on nuclear weapons to fend off the USSR’s overwhelming conventional forces. Stimulated by the frustrations of Vietnam, the Air Force transformed itself again by moving both backward, to develop conventional close-support aircraft, and forward, to the age of stealth, precision-guided munitions and high-tech reconnaissance. Prompted by experiences in Iraq, the Air Force has sped up its third transformation into an unbeatable force using cutting-edge information technology to integrate command, control, intelligence and surveillance. Boyne has no doubt the Air Force won the Cold War and may soon deliver weapons with enough precision to win battles without the aid of infantry. He make no secret of his love for his subject, reserving his disapproval for its enemies, from the Soviet Union, Ho Chi Minh and Saddam Hussein to any American leader aiming to cut the Air Force budget or restrain its freedom. Readers looking for stories of air combat will not be disappointed, but these occupy relatively few pages in a book packed with organizational, political and technical details.
Dedicated military buffs will appreciate this avalanche of information, but average readers may learn more about the Air Force than they want to know.Pub Date: July 2, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-312-35811-2
Page Count: 544
Publisher: Dunne/St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2007
An intriguing meditation on the nature of the universe and our attempts to understand it that should appeal to both...
Italian theoretical physicist Rovelli (General Relativity: The Most Beautiful of Theories, 2015, etc.) shares his thoughts on the broader scientific and philosophical implications of the great revolution that has taken place over the past century.
These seven lessons, which first appeared as articles in the Sunday supplement of the Italian newspaper Sole 24 Ore, are addressed to readers with little knowledge of physics. In less than 100 pages, the author, who teaches physics in both France and the United States, cogently covers the great accomplishments of the past and the open questions still baffling physicists today. In the first lesson, he focuses on Einstein's theory of general relativity. He describes Einstein's recognition that gravity "is not diffused through space [but] is that space itself" as "a stroke of pure genius." In the second lesson, Rovelli deals with the puzzling features of quantum physics that challenge our picture of reality. In the remaining sections, the author introduces the constant fluctuations of atoms, the granular nature of space, and more. "It is hardly surprising that there are more things in heaven and earth, dear reader, than have been dreamed of in our philosophy—or in our physics,” he writes. Rovelli also discusses the issues raised in loop quantum gravity, a theory that he co-developed. These issues lead to his extraordinary claim that the passage of time is not fundamental but rather derived from the granular nature of space. The author suggests that there have been two separate pathways throughout human history: mythology and the accumulation of knowledge through observation. He believes that scientists today share the same curiosity about nature exhibited by early man.
An intriguing meditation on the nature of the universe and our attempts to understand it that should appeal to both scientists and general readers.Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-18441-3
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Riverhead
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A magnificent account of a central reality of our times, incorporating deep scientific expertise, broad political and social knowledge, and ethical insight, and Idled with beautifully written biographical sketches of the men and women who created nuclear physics. Rhodes describes in detail the great scientific achievements that led up to the invention of the atomic bomb. Everything of importance is examined, from the discovery of the atomic nucleus and of nuclear fission to the emergence of quantum physics, the invention of the mass-spectroscope and of the cyclotron, the creation of such man-made elements as plutonium and tritium, and implementation of the nuclear chain reaction in uranium. Even more important, Rhodes shows how these achievements were thrust into the arms of the state, which culminated in the unfolding of the nuclear arms race. Often brilliantly, he records the rise of fascism and of anti-Semitism, and the intensification of nationalist ambitions. He traces the outbreak of WW II, which provoked a hysterical rivalry among nations to devise the bomb. This book contains a grim description of Japanese resistance, and of the horrible psychological numbing that caused an unparalleled tolerance for human suffering and destruction. Rhodes depicts the Faustian scale of the Manhattan Project. His account of the dropping of the bomb itself, and of the awful firebombing that prepared its way, is unforgettable. Although Rhodes' gallery of names and events is sometimes dizzying, his scientific discussions often daunting, he has written a book of great drama and sweep. A superb accomplishment.
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1986
ISBN: 0684813785
Page Count: 932
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1986
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