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Arguments That Count : Physics, Computing, and Missile Defense, 1949-2012 by Rebecca Slayton (2013, Hardcover)
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About this product
Product Identifiers
PublisherMIT Press
ISBN-100262019442
ISBN-139780262019446
eBay Product ID (ePID)166355311
Product Key Features
Book TitleArguments That Count : Physics, Computing, and Missile Defense, 1949-2012
Number of Pages344 Pages
LanguageEnglish
TopicSoftware Development & Engineering / General, Public Policy / Military Policy, Social Aspects, Military / Weapons, Computer Science, Anthropology / General, History, Security (National & International), Physics / General, Science & Technology
Publication Year2013
IllustratorYes
GenreComputers, Political Science, Technology & Engineering, Social Science, Science, Biography & Autobiography, History
AuthorRebecca Slayton
Book SeriesInside Technology Ser.
FormatHardcover
Dimensions
Item Height0.8 in
Item Weight20.8 Oz
Item Length9.2 in
Item Width6.2 in
Additional Product Features
Intended AudienceTrade
LCCN2012-051748
ReviewsSlayton finds an ingenious and novel way to tell the history of missile defense systems anew: as a stage on which physicists and computing experts--computer professionals? software engineers? this group's muddled identity is part of Slayton's point--performed for one another and for policy-makers and the public, while using those performances to forward the individual and community objectives., Rebecca Slayton's book is an important addition to the literature on BMD, and also a significant and original contribution to how we think about and conceptualize the role and efficacy of advanced military systems....Fundamentally, Slayton's ability to bridge the gap between the computer science and political science literatures provides a much broader contribution to our thinking about how weapons systems and debates over national security are intrinsically socialized, and are therefore unpredictable and...'arbitrarily complex'., In addition to providing new insights into the debate over missile defense, Slayton raises valuable questions about the broader interaction between scientific expertise and advocacy., This complicated, fascinating, many-layered story is told with clarity, insight, and intelligence. For policy makers, it is a cautionary tale about the reliability of ballistic missile defense. For students of social science, it conveys insights that will prove useful to historians and sociologists of science and technology, students of American politics and security studies, and even anthropologists seeking to understand the curious culture of high-tech war in the space age., In her subtle and understated style, Slayton concludes that we must 'recognize that the risks we face can only partly be addressed by the physical ingenuity of America's top scientists and engineers'. She adds that all 'complex technological systems...can never be only physical, but...are simultaneously social and political to the core'., Rebecca Slayton has given us a very informative and original study of the relationship between science and public policy in her book, Arguments that Count: Physics, Computing, and Missile Defense, 1949-2012 ....It should be of interest to academics in the field of national security studies as well as to those actively engaged in policy formulation and technology development related to missile defense., Slayton finds an ingenious and novel way to tell the history of missile defensesystems anew: as a stage on which physicists and computing experts -- computer professionals'software engineers? this group's muddled identity is part of Slayton's point -- performed for oneanother and for policy-makers and the public, while using those performances to forward theindividual and community objectives., In addition to providing new insights into the debate over missile defense, Slaytonraises valuable questions about the broader interaction between scientific expertise andadvocacy., Slayton finds an ingenious and novel way to tell the history of missile defense systems anew: as a stage on which physicists and computing experts -- computer professionals? software engineers? this group's muddled identity is part of Slayton's point -- performed for one another and for policy-makers and the public, while using those performances to forward the individual and community objectives.
Dewey Edition23
Grade FromCollege Graduate Student
Dewey Decimal358.1/740973
SynopsisHow differing assessments of risk by physicists and computer scientists have influenced public debate over nuclear defense. In a rapidly changing world, we rely upon experts to assess the promise and risks of new technology. But how do these experts make sense of a highly uncertain future? In Arguments that Count , Rebecca Slayton offers an important new perspective. Drawing on new historical documents and interviews as well as perspectives in science and technology studies, she provides an original account of how scientists came to terms with the unprecedented threat of nuclear-armed intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). She compares how two different professional communities--physicists and computer scientists--constructed arguments about the risks of missile defense, and how these arguments changed over time. Slayton shows that our understanding of technological risks is shaped by disciplinary repertoires--the codified knowledge and mathematical rules that experts use to frame new challenges. And, significantly, a new repertoire can bring long-neglected risks into clear view. In the 1950s, scientists recognized that high-speed computers would be needed to cope with the unprecedented speed of ICBMs. But the nation's elite science advisors had no way to analyze the risks of computers so used physics to assess what they could: radar and missile performance. Only decades later, after establishing computing as a science, were advisors able to analyze authoritatively the risks associated with complex software--most notably, the risk of a catastrophic failure. As we continue to confront new threats, including that of cyber attack, Slayton offers valuable insight into how different kinds of expertise can limit or expand our capacity to address novel technological risks.
LC Classification NumberUA22.S57 2013
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