Accessory to War

The Unspoken Alliance Between Astrophysics and the Military

By: Neil deGrasse Tyson, Avis Lang

Narrated by: Courtney B. Vance

New York Times Bestseller

An exploration of the age-old complicity between skywatchers and warfighters, from the best-selling author of Astrophysics for People in a Hurry.

In this fascinating foray into the centuries-old relationship between science and military power, acclaimed astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and writer-researcher Avis Lang examine how the methods and tools of astrophysics have been enlisted in the service of war. "The overlap is strong, and the knowledge flows in both directions," say the authors, because astrophysicists and military planners care about many of the same things: multi-spectral detection, ranging, tracking, imaging, high ground, nuclear fusion, and access to space. Tyson and Lang call it a "curiously complicit" alliance. "The universe is both the ultimate frontier and the highest of high grounds," they write. "Shared by both space scientists and space warriors, it’s a laboratory for one and a battlefield for the other. The explorer wants to understand it; the soldier wants to dominate it. But without the right technology—which is more or less the same technology for both parties—nobody can get to it, operate in it, scrutinize it, dominate it, or use it to their advantage and someone else’s disadvantage."

Spanning early celestial navigation to satellite-enabled warfare, Accessory to War is a richly researched and provocative examination of the intersection of science, technology, industry, and power that will introduce Tyson’s millions of fans to yet another dimension of how the universe has shaped our lives and our world.

Reality is not linear

Excellent commentary on the nonlinear and morally gray aspects of Human progress, and the necessity of such.

Tough imagery.

Solid performance.

Recommended

An amazing book. Makes you think.

Blazed through the book. It contains amazing facts, Well reasoned arguments and makes you think about the direction that we should all start to work towards in everyday life, given the past and the direction that are currently on.

Vast information that touches seemingly everything

Absolutely incredible in its forging path to bring humility to every member of humanity.
Thank you.

Attention Demanding?

This book is filled with interesting facts. Details about historical events that one does not really learn in school.
I like how this book helped me understand our recent past better. As someone who is a big space/Sci-Fi fan, this book helped me ground myself and make more educated guesses as to where the future could be leading.

At times one feels like there are so many facts that it is easy to drift off I to other thought, and one ends up afraid that one will have to re-listen large portions, yet strangely enough it’s a very simple book to understand. So it’s even ok to go on a tangent every now and then.

Made His Point and Kept Making It

I expected this book, by a well-respected and famous scientist, to be engaging and provacative. Instead Tyson and Lang make their point about the military-science-industrial complex in the first chapter and continue to give you history lessons and dry anecdotes along the way. I find that it would have made a more interesting podcast or YouTube mini-series.