Master Mind: The Rise & Fall of Fritz Haber, the Nobel Laureate Who Launched the Age of Chemical Warfare
Oct 2009 · Harper Collins
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“The dramatic life of a German Jewish scientist caught, of his own will, between the promise of science and the annihilation of war.” —Roald Hoffmann, chemist and writer
FRITZ HABER—a Nobel laureate in chemistry, a friend of Albert Einstein, a German Jew and World War I hero—may be the most important scientist you have never heard of. The Haber-Bosch process, which he invented at the turn of the twentieth century, revolutionized agriculture by converting nitrogen to fertilizer in quantities massive enough to feed the world. The invention has become an essential pillar for life on earth; some two billion people on our planet could not survive without it. Yet this same process supplied the German military with explosives during World War I, and Haber orchestrated Germany’s use of an entirely new weapon—poison gas. Eventually, Haber’s efforts led to Zyklon B, the gas later used to kill millions—including Haber’s own relatives—in Nazi concentration camps.
Master Mind is a thought-provoking biography of this controversial scientist, a modern Faust who personifies the paradox of science, its ability to create and to destroy. It offers a complete chronicle of his tumultuous and ultimately tragic life, from his childhood and rise to prominence in the heady days of the German Empire to his disgrace and exile at the hands of the Nazis; from early decades as the hero who eliminated the threat of starvation to his lingering legacy as a villain whose work led to the demise of millions.
“A fascinating tale of science, history, politics, and antisemitism . . . exceptionally compelling reading.” —Deborah Lipstadt, author of Denying the Holocaust
FRITZ HABER—a Nobel laureate in chemistry, a friend of Albert Einstein, a German Jew and World War I hero—may be the most important scientist you have never heard of. The Haber-Bosch process, which he invented at the turn of the twentieth century, revolutionized agriculture by converting nitrogen to fertilizer in quantities massive enough to feed the world. The invention has become an essential pillar for life on earth; some two billion people on our planet could not survive without it. Yet this same process supplied the German military with explosives during World War I, and Haber orchestrated Germany’s use of an entirely new weapon—poison gas. Eventually, Haber’s efforts led to Zyklon B, the gas later used to kill millions—including Haber’s own relatives—in Nazi concentration camps.
Master Mind is a thought-provoking biography of this controversial scientist, a modern Faust who personifies the paradox of science, its ability to create and to destroy. It offers a complete chronicle of his tumultuous and ultimately tragic life, from his childhood and rise to prominence in the heady days of the German Empire to his disgrace and exile at the hands of the Nazis; from early decades as the hero who eliminated the threat of starvation to his lingering legacy as a villain whose work led to the demise of millions.
“A fascinating tale of science, history, politics, and antisemitism . . . exceptionally compelling reading.” —Deborah Lipstadt, author of Denying the Holocaust
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About the author
Daniel Charles is the author of Lords of the Harvest: Biotech, Big Money, and the Future of Food and a former technology correspondent for National Public Radio and the New Scientist. He lives in Washington, D.C.
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