Explosives: History with a Bang

by G.I. Brown, Adam Hart-Davis (Foreword by)

The dramatic history of explosives, from the invention of gunpowder to the H-bomb





Laying the emphasis on the lives of the people involved, on the diverse uses of explosives, and on their social and historical impact, this entertaining history relates a story of remarkable international and human endeavor. Many of those involved—Roger Bacon, Guy Fawkes, Alfred Nobel, Robert Oppenheimer—are famed worldwide; others, such as C.F. Schonbein, William Bickford, Sir Frederick Abel, and Charles E. Munroe, though less well-known, also played critical roles. Alongside their achievements, this book highlights the uses and impact of explosives in both war and terrorism, and in civil engineering, quarrying, mining, demolition, fireworks manufacture, and shooting for sport. In many cases explosives are seen to have had a significant historical impact as, for example, in the early use of gunpowder in the Civil War, the defeat of the Spanish Armada, and the worldwide opening up of canals and railways.

Genres: History, Technology, Science, Nonfiction

288 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1998

Reviews

[Toby]

A light and enjoyable read but not the text book I thought it might be. Lots of background history about the companies that made the explosives to the detriment of discussion about the explosives themselves. Did not mention some fundamental physics of explosives (e.g. Deflagration/Detonation) and no mention of liquid or fuel/air explosives. Overall a good introduction to those who nothing about explosives.

[Hugo Van Zoest]

Heel leesbaar

[Steven Minniear]

A good solid history which ends in 2010. I wonder what has developed in the field since then.

[K De]

A thousand year history of the invention and implementation of exothermic chemical reactions from gunpowder to use in nuclear weapons. It is chock full of little details on how and what types of gunpowder and subsequent types of explosives were developed from dynamite to nitroglycerin. There is tables in the back of the book that shows the chemical composition and reaction formula for those types of explosives. Highly recommended for those who have a interest in chemistry and exothermic fast reactions!

[Smellsofbikes]

Engaging history of explosives, from the Greeks to nuclear weapons. It has a lot of historical information about explosives manufacturing firms and the people who ran them. It's not the sort of organic chemistry orgy that Tenney Davis wrote, but it's interesting and a lot of fun to read, despite its British/Scottish focus.

[Eric Moore]

admittedly not one of the great works of history, but fairly well executed. I happen to find energetic materials interesting, so that certainly helped fuel my enjoyment, but a pretty good read.