i listened to this and it was long....well researched but very boring. I could have lived with just a summary

Neil DeGrasse Tyson goes over not only the history of the military industrial complex dating back to the age of exploration, but all possible sides in the argument. Pretty good read if you have a passion for space, may be found boring by those who don't.

3/5

Everything in this book was really interesting, and Neil deGrasse Tyson is a joy to listen to.

Unfortunately, this was was a scatter of random discussion topics around the history of science, and not really a coherent book about Astrophysics and the Military.

So definitely still an interesting read, but I would have liked more of a solid theme and/or structure to make the info easier to follow.

The first half of this was amazing, the history of things like the telescope, radio, and how we eventually got to space. The second half was interesting, but bogged down in politics (which is what it is), so it slowed down there. Still fascinating and worth the read.
And it's actually just 400 pages, the rest is footnotes... So don't be scared.

Dry, nerdy, and straight up my alley. Not written for those with only a casual interest, this book reads like an academic dissertation ... with classic Neil deGrasse Tyson elan.

Compared to the fluffy, broad strokes of [b: Astrophysics for People in a Hurry|32191710|Astrophysics for People in a Hurry|Neil deGrasse Tyson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1527255595s/32191710.jpg|52832605], Accessory to War is chock full of factoids as well as space, science, and political jargon.

I wrote my MA thesis on international outer space law and the militarization of outer space with a focus on the US, China, and Russia—all topics this book focuses on, as well as the history and development of space use and cooperation between science and the military.

Important reading, the astrostrategic importance of controlling the ultimate high ground is clearly stressed. As the Chinese defence white paper of 2015 notes, "whoever controls space will control the earth."

Accessory to War dovetailed perfectly with [b: The Making of the Atomic Bomb|16884|The Making of the Atomic Bomb|Richard Rhodes|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1440621221s/16884.jpg|105195], both sobering in their message: humans have the power to destroy the world, what are we doing to keep that power in check?

We're already making an absolute mess of outer space, it is amazing (/sad) that humans can enter the vast void of space and clog up low earth orbit it with trash. That's right, space trash is a huge problem.

Full review to come.

"Scientists' urge to collaborate transcends religion, culture, and politics, because in space there is no religion, culture, or politics—only the receding boundary of our ignorance and the advancing frontier of our cosmic discovery."

Shows the close ties between the military and scientific advancement, especially to astrophysics. The human drive to defend and conquer lead to ever greater desires for power and knowledge, so the money and support pours into science to help advance the militaristic goals of a country, nation, etc.

I should have realized it before, but I learned about how important lens technology is to astrophysics. It makes so much sense, since how else can we observe space while grounded on Earth and limited in our traveling distance beyond our planet.

Listened to this while stapling up screening in the basement.

A very interesting look at the history of science development in the field of astrophysics and how progress is intricately linked to wars. This book did have some slow bits that bogged down the book somewhere the middle, but was very interesting and enjoyable on the whole. As times change, one hopes that discovery for its own sake will propel sciences in the future or advancing mankind. This book was very digestible. I recommend to anyone who enjoys history and/or science.