Seconds to Midnight is a concise history of nuclear weapons, tracing their development from the scientific breakthroughs of the 1930s to the Cold War arms race between East and West, and on to today's nuclear hotspots in India, North Korea, Taiwan, and Iran. The book also explores efforts to contain this danger through international treaties, scientific advocacy, and public protest movements—responses to what remains one of the most serious threats to global security and human survival. By providing essential context, the book helps readers understand the urgency of today's nuclear dilemmas.
Contents Preface 7 Abbreviations 9 Introduction 11 1 Discovering the Secrets of the Uranium Nucleus 17 3 All the Great Powers Become 6 Four New Nuclear Weapon States 2 The Worldʼs First Nuclear Weapon State 31 Nuclear Weapon States 65 4 “Atoms for Peace” and “Atoms for War” 94 5 The Role of Science During the Cold War 130 – and Several Candidates 150 7 Nuclear Hotspots in the New Millennium 191 8 Nuclear Weapons, Climate Crisis and the Doomsday Clock 225 9 The Third Nuclear Age 241 Notes 249 Bibliography 261 Index 270 Author Biographies 2
