Alex Wellerstein
@wellerstein.bsky.social
Nuclear historian. Professor at Stevens Institute of Technology. Visiting researcher at Nuclear Knowledges program, Sciences Po (Paris). Author of THE MOST AWFUL RESPONSIBILITY (2025). Creator of NUKEMAP. Blogging at https://doomsdaymachines.net.
Although it does create some unintentional humor, such as James Conant, nerdy administrator, automagically morphing into Conan, barbarian.
November 18, 2025 at 7:03 AM
Although it does create some unintentional humor, such as James Conant, nerdy administrator, automagically morphing into Conan, barbarian.
FWIW I have found the Hilde de Ridder-Symoens volumes on "A History of the University in Europe" to be REALLY interesting for medieval and early modern universities. Like here is just one random tidbit re: accessibility of medieval universities — not what anyone (much less students) expect...
November 14, 2025 at 2:31 PM
FWIW I have found the Hilde de Ridder-Symoens volumes on "A History of the University in Europe" to be REALLY interesting for medieval and early modern universities. Like here is just one random tidbit re: accessibility of medieval universities — not what anyone (much less students) expect...
The new book... exists!!! Got my author copies in the mail today! Looks quite readable! Spelled my name right on the cover, even!!!
harpercollins.com/products/the-most-awful-responsibility-alex-wellerstein
harpercollins.com/products/the-most-awful-responsibility-alex-wellerstein
November 12, 2025 at 3:42 PM
The new book... exists!!! Got my author copies in the mail today! Looks quite readable! Spelled my name right on the cover, even!!!
harpercollins.com/products/the-most-awful-responsibility-alex-wellerstein
harpercollins.com/products/the-most-awful-responsibility-alex-wellerstein
A few more graphs and tables from said article. I am sort of obsessed with the phenomenology of the bomb — so much of it seems so hard to capture — so I eat this kind of stuff up.
November 12, 2025 at 2:01 PM
A few more graphs and tables from said article. I am sort of obsessed with the phenomenology of the bomb — so much of it seems so hard to capture — so I eat this kind of stuff up.
In my part, I make reference to photos of a nuclear test in which birds can be seen igniting in the air as a result of the thermal pulse — this is what I was referencing. From Science, vol 138, no. 3539 (October 26, 1962), which included an article on the brightness of an atomic bomb.
November 12, 2025 at 1:43 PM
In my part, I make reference to photos of a nuclear test in which birds can be seen igniting in the air as a result of the thermal pulse — this is what I was referencing. From Science, vol 138, no. 3539 (October 26, 1962), which included an article on the brightness of an atomic bomb.
buddy, if it was up to me, you wouldn't be running at all. like hell I'm going to give you unfettered access to my keychain.
November 12, 2025 at 1:24 PM
buddy, if it was up to me, you wouldn't be running at all. like hell I'm going to give you unfettered access to my keychain.
The first photo of my new book, courtesy of my editor... "The Most Awful Responsibility: Truman and the Secret Struggle for Control of the Atomic Age" comes out in early December! Feel free to pre-order it today! www.harpercollins.com/products/the...
November 6, 2025 at 10:41 AM
The first photo of my new book, courtesy of my editor... "The Most Awful Responsibility: Truman and the Secret Struggle for Control of the Atomic Age" comes out in early December! Feel free to pre-order it today! www.harpercollins.com/products/the...
Loving this Reddit exchange about a bug in which Arthur's mouth doesn't move during a mission of Red Dead Redemption 2 on PC
November 4, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Loving this Reddit exchange about a bug in which Arthur's mouth doesn't move during a mission of Red Dead Redemption 2 on PC
The half-life of a relevant analogy: instances of the terms "atomic Pearl Harbor" and "nuclear Pearl Harbor" (combined) across the Google Books corpus using Google Ngrams. Unfortunately doing the same search for "nuclear 9/11" turns up too much OCR noise.
November 4, 2025 at 12:14 PM
The half-life of a relevant analogy: instances of the terms "atomic Pearl Harbor" and "nuclear Pearl Harbor" (combined) across the Google Books corpus using Google Ngrams. Unfortunately doing the same search for "nuclear 9/11" turns up too much OCR noise.
Your first photo reminds me of this fastener for window shutters that I saw near the Jardin du Luxembourg... I love these kinds of things both because they reflect a wonderful attention to detail, and, more selfishly, because they make me feel observant and clever when I notice them...
November 4, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Your first photo reminds me of this fastener for window shutters that I saw near the Jardin du Luxembourg... I love these kinds of things both because they reflect a wonderful attention to detail, and, more selfishly, because they make me feel observant and clever when I notice them...
I mean, he's a great dog. I just don't think he'd get a lot of re-sale value. He only cost us $20 brand-new! Of course we've put a lot more than that into him over the years...
October 25, 2025 at 10:15 PM
I mean, he's a great dog. I just don't think he'd get a lot of re-sale value. He only cost us $20 brand-new! Of course we've put a lot more than that into him over the years...
My suggestion that nearly 13-year old American rescue mutts, while very loving and adorable and definitely Good Boys, were probably not fetching top dollar on the dog resale market was treated as painfully naive.
October 25, 2025 at 8:39 PM
My suggestion that nearly 13-year old American rescue mutts, while very loving and adorable and definitely Good Boys, were probably not fetching top dollar on the dog resale market was treated as painfully naive.
Don't forget our friend Hugh Explosive
October 22, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Don't forget our friend Hugh Explosive
oh Luxembourg. what have you done?
October 11, 2025 at 6:54 PM
oh Luxembourg. what have you done?
I updated my post with one more graph — converting those fissile material numbers to "weapon equivalents," including different possibilities for composite core weapons.
October 11, 2025 at 12:01 PM
I updated my post with one more graph — converting those fissile material numbers to "weapon equivalents," including different possibilities for composite core weapons.
In Luxembourg for the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT) annual meeting at the University of Luxembourg at Belval. Which used to be a steel mill? Huh.
October 10, 2025 at 6:31 AM
In Luxembourg for the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT) annual meeting at the University of Luxembourg at Belval. Which used to be a steel mill? Huh.
Wild illustration choice in this slide from training materials for ICBM launch officers, ca. 2010
October 1, 2025 at 2:14 PM
Wild illustration choice in this slide from training materials for ICBM launch officers, ca. 2010
There is a "double flash" in the apparent brightness of a nuclear detonation in the atmosphere, which may be what you are thinking of...
October 1, 2025 at 12:38 AM
There is a "double flash" in the apparent brightness of a nuclear detonation in the atmosphere, which may be what you are thinking of...
OK, this is the strangest subreddit I've stumbled across for awhile. I get what it is about, but there's something very cyberpunk and surreal about it... www.reddit.com/r/TraceAnObj...
September 26, 2025 at 8:42 PM
OK, this is the strangest subreddit I've stumbled across for awhile. I get what it is about, but there's something very cyberpunk and surreal about it... www.reddit.com/r/TraceAnObj...
mildly interesting: my long-running VS Code script finished running, but VS code itself broke. I can copy and paste the terminal text (and it is complete when I do that, whereas it is visually corrupted), but I cannot edit or manipulate anything else. how weird.
September 26, 2025 at 8:20 PM
mildly interesting: my long-running VS Code script finished running, but VS code itself broke. I can copy and paste the terminal text (and it is complete when I do that, whereas it is visually corrupted), but I cannot edit or manipulate anything else. how weird.
I've been thinking a lot about this comic lately, especially its take on "institutions." It goes both ways: the oppressive institutions are often more brittle than they look, but so also are the ones you rely on for safety, health, stability, job security, etc. www.viruscomix.com/page528.html
September 18, 2025 at 9:59 AM
I've been thinking a lot about this comic lately, especially its take on "institutions." It goes both ways: the oppressive institutions are often more brittle than they look, but so also are the ones you rely on for safety, health, stability, job security, etc. www.viruscomix.com/page528.html
one of the most insufferable things the NYT does is run a story and then spend half of the page talking about itself and its reporters
September 5, 2025 at 3:37 PM
one of the most insufferable things the NYT does is run a story and then spend half of the page talking about itself and its reporters
dubious dog is dubious
August 31, 2025 at 8:42 PM
dubious dog is dubious
The 1949 report, on the Super estimates tritium as a byproduct of n + N-14 reactions, but concludes it would be negligible from a health perspective.
August 30, 2025 at 12:56 PM
The 1949 report, on the Super estimates tritium as a byproduct of n + N-14 reactions, but concludes it would be negligible from a health perspective.
I'll be posting the documents and some commentary/discussion of them early next week. Until then, here's a sample: "The number of bombs [for] a lethal effect over the entire world is ... so large that it amounts to destroying the entire world population by allocating ~1 bomb to each person!"
August 30, 2025 at 12:27 PM
I'll be posting the documents and some commentary/discussion of them early next week. Until then, here's a sample: "The number of bombs [for] a lethal effect over the entire world is ... so large that it amounts to destroying the entire world population by allocating ~1 bomb to each person!"