Teller's War; The Top-Secret Story Behind the Star Wars Deception

New York: Simon & Schuster, 1992. First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. 350, [2] pages. Illustrations. Figures. X-Ray Laser Tests. Notes. Bibliography. Index. Inscribed by author on fep. Pencil erasure residue on fep. William J. Broad (born March 7, 1951) is an American science journalist, author and a Senior Writer at The New York Times. Broad is the author or co-author of eight books, most recently The Science of Yoga: The Risks and the Rewards (Simon & Schuster). Germs: Biological Weapons and America's Secret War (Simon & Schuster) was a number-one New York Times Best Seller. His books have been translated into more than a dozen languages. His other titles include The Universe Below: Discovering the Secrets of the Deep Sea (Simon & Schuster); Teller's War: The Top-Secret Story Behind the Star Wars Deception (Simon & Schuster); and with co-author Nicholas Wade, Betrayers of the Truth: Fraud and Deceit in the Halls of Science (Simon & Schuster). Broad's work focuses on the social repercussions of science. The author argues that Edward Teller used his overly optimistic salesmanship and unchallenged connections to leapfrog every political and scientific check and balance, as his X-ray laser laid the foundation for the Strategic Defense Initiative--Star Wars. Derived from a Kirkus review: New York Times science-writer Broad, twice a Pulitzer-winner, presents a refreshingly factual account of how physicist Edward Teller sold the Star Wars concept to two conservative Administrations--and adds some prescient comments on how to prevent such apparent abuses of power in the future. Teller, co-inventor of the hydrogen bomb, has long been known as one of America's most enthusiastic cold warriors. Broad says, when Teller became obsessed with the experimental X-ray laser project that would form the heart of Star Wars, he went straight to the White House to lobby for funds, ignoring criticism from a wide array of experts. Teller's enthusiasm won the heart of Ronald Reagan. Broad's thesis--that this waste of funds was the result of an abuse of personal privilege, the defense industry's tradition of secrecy, and a lack of an advisory panel for judging the technical merit of proposed weapons projects--is backed up by facts.