The Age of Radiance

The Epic Rise and Dramatic Fall of the Atomic Era

De: Craig Nelson

Narrado por: George Newbern

“A thrilling, intense, and disturbing account of the atomic era, from the discovery of X-rays to the tragic meltdown of Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant…Rich with powerful images and fraught with drama” (The Christian Science Monitor).

When Marie Curie, Enrico Fermi, and Edward Teller forged the science of radioactivity, they began a revolution that ran from the nineteenth century through the course of World War II and the Cold War to our current confrontation with the dangers of nuclear power and proliferation. While nuclear science improves our lives, radiation’s invisible powers can trigger cancer and cellular mayhem. Writing with a biographer’s passion, New York Times bestselling author Craig Nelson unlocks one of the great mysteries of the universe.

In The Age of Radiance, Nelson illuminates a pageant of fascinating historical figures: Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Curtis LeMay, John F. Kennedy, Robert McNamara, Ronald Reagan, and Mikhail Gorbachev, among others. He reveals how Jewish scientists fleeing Hitler transformed America from a nation that created light bulbs into one that split atoms; Alfred Nobel’s dream of global peace; and how, in our time, emergency workers and utility employees fought to contain life-threatening nuclear reactors. By tracing our complicated relationship with the dangerous energy we unleashed, Nelson discusses how atomic power and radiation are indivisible from our everyday lives.

Brilliantly told and masterfully crafted, The Age of Radiance provides a new understanding of a misunderstood epoch in history and restores to prominence the forgotten heroes and heroines who have changed all of our lives for better and for worse. “This is the kind of book that doesn’t just inform you but leaves you feeling smarter.” (The Dallas Morning News).

Interesting and informative, and yes........very e

This is a perfect book mate to "the disappearing spoon" and/or history of the atomic bomb. I really enjoyed the energy for the reader

great book

great rump through the history of radiation and the wonderful characters who brought it to us.

Good info. Nice read

Enjoyed the history of atomic power. Hope it helps dispel inaccurate misconceptions of nuclear power for some

Strong finish

This ended for me better than it began, as the history it covered I was less aware of in newer years pertaining to nuclear history. Many good statistics and emotionally taxing moments in the latter parts of this book that for me are a plus, as I am a whore for drama. It would have been nicer if the drama was fictional, but you learn much about the real effects of radioactive catastrophe, as the earth is no stranger of...just blinded by nations attempts to keep it under the table. If particle physics are strange or old hat to you, the end of this book should still be somewhat informative, and educational. Take that, and my three star rating for what it is.

Badly narrated

The voice sounds bored and so the reader gets bored. We needed Scott Brick here or one of the better voices to bring this book to life.

Interesting listen for science history

As someone in nuclear science, this book had bits that are relatively well known to the field. However, it also had some interesting stories that I had never heard before that gave a freshness to the subject. Definitely a good read for those into science history.

Liberal who likes nuclear power

He berates Reagan as a warmonger and praises Gorbechov as a man who could have ridden the world of nuclear weapons. Then he goes on to discount any science from Russia and claims that there is “nothing credible” from scientists who have studied Chernobyl long term. He says there’s no long term danger to exposure to radiation and cites the studies from Hiroshima as evidence, but fails to note those studies didn’t start until 5 years after the bombs dropped and take no account of any deaths after the bomb to when the study starts.

In summary, he ignores any science or studies he doesn’t agree with, attacks conservative thinking and decides at the end of his book that we all need to grow up and embrace nuclear energy as the way to stop global warming and to stop using coal and gas. He never pays any attention to how we might have caused global warming through nuclear accidents and nuclear tests and seems to have blinders on when it comes to long term damage from radiation across the planet. Occasionally he has a paragraph or two about these things but quickly moves back to his propaganda.

If you don’t know anything about nuclear energy, this book will give you a timeline of the people and history. If you do know about research across the globe and the dangers of long term nuclear exposure, this book will drive you batty.

Be warned, the author has his own agenda which he never openly acknowledges. Read this book with a grain of salt and do more research. Don’t think of this author as being an expert.

By the way, I’m not a scientist, a physicist, or a nuclear expert. I am an American social worker. If I can learn to understand the nuances of atomic energy and how it has impacted our environment, anyone can. Learn people. Learn so that we actually can do something about the real environmental issues we face. Fossil fuels are not the real problem. Let’s face the hidden elephant in the room.

Solid listen, good narrator

If you could sum up The Age of Radiance in three words, what would they be?

A well-written and well-read history of atomic research, from the discovery of radioactivity to the aftermath of the cold war.

Any additional comments?

The narrator read M.I.5 (the British Intelligence Agency) as "em one five" which is inaccurate and was slightly annoying.