The worlds of Herman Kahn : the intuitive science of thermonuclear war / Sharon Ghamari-Tabrizi.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ghamari-Tabrizi, Sharon, 1960-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Nuclear warfare--Philosophy.

Nuclear warfare.

Kahn, Herman, 1922-1983.

Kahn, Herman.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (428 p.)

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, MA : Harvard University Press, 2005.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Herman Kahn was the only nuclear strategist in America who might have made a living as a standup comedian. In telling his story, Ghamari-Tabrizi captures an era that is still very much with us--a time whose innocence, gruesome nuclear humor, and outrageous but deadly serious visions of annihilation have their echoes in the "known unknowns and unknown unknowns" that guide policymakers in our own embattled world.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Prologue: A Matter of Faith

1: How Many Kahns Can There Be?

2: The Cold War Avant-Garde at RAND

3: The Real Dr. Strangelove

4: An Operational but Undetected Capability

5: How to Build a World with Artful Intuition

6: Faith and Insight in War-Gaming

7: The Mineshaft Gap

8: On Thermonuclear War

9: Comedy of the Unspeakable

10: Mass Murder or the Spirit of Humanism?

Epilogue: A Comic Philosophy

Abbreviations

Notes

Acknowledgments

Index

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780674037564

0674037561

OCLC:

646811585