Blackett's War: The Men Who Defeated the Nazi U-Boats and Brought Science to the Art of Warfare
“[A] terrific story, exciting, illuminating, well told.  And what a movie it would make, especially in 3-D . . . [Budiansky] is a fine writer.”—David Walton, Dallas Morning News“[T]horough and focused . . . [Budiansky’s] lively writing style delivers a fascinating portrayal of how science contributed to winning the war in Europe.”—Marc Levinson,The Wall Street Journal“Lively and enlightening . . . Writing with an easy command of science and a sharp eye for fresh and telling detail, Budiansky knowingly and entertainingly re-creates the almost constant struggle between hidebound military traditionalists and the clever civilians who saved them.”—Evan Thomas,The Washington Post"Budiansky does a masterful job illustrating the debt we owe to [Blackett's] courage and foresight at a time when innovation made all the difference in the direction of world history."—Bob Kustra,Idaho Statesman“[E]ngaging . . . the more closely one looks at Patrick Blackett, the more impressive he appears . . . Far more than a scientific or military biography,Blackett’s Waris also a finely wrought and well-sourced social history of elite science’s wartime mobilization . . . [A] wonderful revisionist history of how intelligence derived from Bletchley Park’s breakthroughs combined with Blackett’s operational research to bypass and destroy the Nazi Wolfpacks.”—Michael Schrage,Fortune “A fascinating and skilful blend of naval warfare, science, and British social history with a richly diverse cast of characters.”—Alex Kershaw,World War II Magazine “Little-known story of the Allied scientists whose unconventional thinking helped thwart the Nazi U-boats in World War II . . . [A]n excellent, well-researched account . . . An engrossing work rich in insights and anecdotes.—Kirkus Reviews, starred reviewRecommended reading,Scientific American “A beautifully written history . . . Budiansky skillfully provides biographical sketches of the important contributors as well as the historical context of the issues they wrestled with.”—Colonel John J. Abbatiello,Proceedings“[A] terrific story, exciting, illuminating, well told.  And what a movie it would make, especially in 3-D . . . [Budiansky] is a fine writer.”—David Walton,Dallas Morning News“A broad history of the foundation of ideas in OR [Operations Research] . . . Revelatory . . . [Blackett’s War] should bring renewed admiration for some forgotten scientific heroes.”—Rob Hardy,The Dispatch(Columbus, Starkville and the Golden Triangle) “Fabulous . . . [Blackett’s War] got me thinking. Is there a modern field of endeavor, operations research & analysis combined with historical business analysis, that can create a body of knowledge that describes, in an operations research sense, how to compete against a giant like Amazon, Apple, Google or Microsoft? . . . Perhaps the next generation of CEOs will use the sophisticated OR strategies developed 70 years ago that are still being used today to tackle our nation's Biggest Problems . . . After all, business is war.”—John Martellaro,TheMacObserver.com“[W]onderfully done, well written, suspenseful and full of the personal and organizational conflicts that can make otherwise pedestrian stories so colorful. In addition to its entertainment value, Blackett’s War speaks clearly and authoritatively about a multitude of technical subjects.”—John R. Satterfield,Naval Historical Foundation