
Redefining Science
Scientists, the National Security State, and Nuclear Weapons in Cold War America
Paul Rubinson(Author)
University of Massachusetts Press
Will be published approx. on 30. December 2016
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-1-62534-244-7 (ISBN)
Description
The Cold War forced scientists to reconcile their values of internationalism and objectivity with the increasingly militaristic uses of scientific knowledge. For decades, antinuclear scientists pursued nuclear disarmament in a variety of ways, from grassroots activism to transnational diplomacy and government science advising. The U.S. government ultimately withstood these efforts, redefining science as a strictly technical endeavor that enhanced national security and deeming science that challenged nuclear weapons on moral grounds ""emotional"" and patently unscientific. In response, many activist scientists restricted themselves to purely technical arguments for arms control. When antinuclear protest erupted in the 1980s, grassroots activists had moved beyond scientific and technical arguments for disarmament. Grounding their stance in the idea that nuclear weapons were immoral, they used the ""emotional"" arguments that most scientists had abandoned.Redefining Science shows that the government achieved its Cold War ""consensus"" only by active opposition to powerful dissenters and helps explain the current and uneasy relationship between scientists, the public, and government in debates over issues such as security, energy, and climate change.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Massachusetts
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 155 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
476 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-62534-244-7 (9781625342447)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Paul Rubinson is assistant professor of history at Bridgewater State University.