The A B C of Armageddon

Peter H. Denton explores Bertrand Russell's attempt to articulate the kind of world he thought possible and the world he feared in the aftermath of World War I. Two concerns were fundamental to Russell's work between 1919 and 1938: the philosophical implications of discoveries in the physical sciences, particularly for the relationship between science and religion, and the grim prospects of an industrial civilization whose science and technology were held responsible for the devastation of the Great War. Placing Russell's work in the context of Anglo-American contemporaries who also perceived this dual aspect of science and technology, Denton explores how, for Russell, the "scientific outlook" was of crucial importance if humanity was to survive in an age of potential technological destruction--themes that are still important today.