false <![CDATA[Before the Fallout: From Marie Curie to Hiroshima]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1180481250m/1045979.jpg 1045979 6 <div><b>The Human Chain Reaction That Led To The Atom Bomb</b></div><div> </div><div>On December 26, 1898, Marie Curie announced the discovery of radium and observed that "radioactivity seems to be an atomic property." A mere 47 years later, "Little Boy"exploded over Hiroshima. Before the Fallout is the epic story of the intervening half century, during which an exhilarating quest to unravel the secrets of the material world revealed how to destroy it, and an open, international, scientific adventure transmuted overnight into a wartime sprint for the bomb. <br><br>Weaving together history, science, and biography, Diana Preston chronicles a human chain reaction of scientists and leaders whose discoveries and decisions forever changed our lives. The early decades of the 20th century brought Einstein's relativity theory, Rutherford's discovery of the atomic nucleus, and Heisenberg's quantum mechanics, and scientists of many nations worked together to tease out the secrets of the atom. Only 12 years before Hiroshima, one leading physicist dismissed the idea of harnessing energy from atoms as "moonshine." Then, on the eve of World War II, the power of atomic fission was revealed, alliances were broken, friendships sundered, and science co-opted by world events. <br><br>Preston interviewed the surviving scientists, and she offers new insight into the fateful wartime meeting between Heisenberg and Bohr, along with a fascinating conclusion examining what might have happened had any number of events occurred differently. She also provides a rare portrait of Hiroshima before the blast.<br><br>As Hiroshima's 60th anniversary approaches, Before the Fallout compels us to consider the threats and moral dilemmas we face in our still dangerous world. </div> 1032405 1 4 2005 Before the Fallout: From Marie Curie to Hiroshima total:30|5:10|4:11|3:9|2:0|1:0| 30 121 64 15 5 0 false false Fri Mar 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 20 12:05:28 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 20 12:06:04 -0700 2009 more...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Feb 05 09:36:20 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 09:36:20 -0800 2009 Readers won't mind that this book offers nothing new about a subject that has been thoroughly examined. Preston's what-if scenarios are as fascinating as her portraits of the players, from Albert Einstein and Robert Oppenheimer to FDR, Emperor Hirohito, and Hitler. Preston's focus on the lesser-know...

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radium - considered miracle element, most expensive
substance in the world.
used to make x-rays. toothpaste made of thorium - to make teeth radiantly white
CURIE HAIR TONIC, bath salts, suppositories,...more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Nov 17 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 16 12:28:06 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 17 12:39:09 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Sun Nov 23 19:16:48 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 23 19:19:46 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Thu May 29 07:40:40 -0700 2008 Thu Jul 10 11:06:32 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Feb 20 10:18:48 -0800 2008 Wed Feb 20 10:22:33 -0800 2008 3 0 false false Wed Mar 26 18:51:08 -0700 2008 Wed Apr 30 15:42:06 -0700 2008 4 0 false false Thu Jul 17 18:39:32 -0700 2008 Thu Jul 17 18:40:39 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Aug 01 21:09:11 -0700 2007 Sun Sep 23 22:00:15 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Fri Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Jul 23 07:31:46 -0700 2008 Wed Jul 23 07:34:16 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Sat Oct 25 08:53:01 -0700 2008 Fri Oct 31 13:52:42 -0700 2008 5 0 false false Sun Apr 27 09:06:41 -0700 2008 Tue Aug 12 09:15:54 -0700 2008 5 0 false false Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Nov 17 21:33:57 -0800 2008 Mon Nov 17 21:34:54 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Thu Nov 26 02:29:02 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 26 02:29:10 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Thu Oct 22 13:51:22 -0700 2009 Thu Nov 12 12:25:32 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Oct 09 16:20:08 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 09 16:20:08 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sat Oct 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 03 05:49:55 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 03 05:51:00 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Aug 14 16:17:54 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 14 16:17:54 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=1045979