The Physics of War

October 21, 2013
This breezy but intelligent introduction to the physics of war covers weapons from ancient times to today’s missiles and H-bombs. Prolific science writer Parker, emeritus professor of physics at Idaho State University (Einstein’s Brainchild: Relativity Made Relatively Easy), states upfront that war basically involves hurting others. Long ago, this involved hurling objects. The simplest weapon—a rock—does damage through its momentum (mass times velocity). Physics demands that momentum be conserved, so an enemy skull absorbs whatever energy the rock imparts. Humans eventually developed an array of machines—devices that make work easier—in order to boost muscle power (slings, bow and arrow), tap into chemical energy (guns, rocket fuels), harness electrical energy, or exploit the power of the atom. Besides weapons, Parker describes devices helpful to making war, from clocks to the telegraph, radio, radar, lasers, and computers. The accompanying military history seems to come from the History Channel but Parker takes his physics seriously. Readers who pay attention, study the diagrams, and do not ignore the simple equations will learn a great deal of the science of war.