Just the Facts: Book Discussion Recap from June 25

Last night, seven people braved the threat of rain to attend the book discussion. Their presence, as always, was much appreciated.

Our book last night was Blackett’s War: the men who defeated the Nazi u-boats and brought science to the art of warfare by Stephen Budiansky. When we think of war, we think of massed armies or fleets facing each other in desperate battles. We think of generals or admirals planning daring attacks or hundreds of heavy bombers laying waste to cities. But during World War II, when the United Kingdom stood alone against Germany, with her cities being smashed by bombers and her merchant shipping being decimated by u-boats, the British government called for help from its scientists. The scientists, led by Patrick Blackett, answered the call. They analyzed the ways in which u-boats were hunted, merchant ships grouped, and anti-aircraft guns were arranged. Most importantly, they brought to war operational research, a method of examining war and battles through a scientific approach. Their efforts resulted in not just improvements in technology, but also in strategy and tactics. During our discussion, we spoke about scientists’ attraction to left-wing politics, utopias, the Nazi decision to ban Jewish scientists and their subsequent contribution to the Allies, creativity under a dictatorship, renewable energy versus fossil fuels, women in science and much more.

Our next meeting will be on Thursday, July 23, 2015 at 7:00pm. The book to be discussed, Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland’s history-making race around the world by Matthew Goodman, is available at the Circulation desk. All are welcome.