Nuclear weapon tests : prohibition or limitation? /

These essays address the numerous, highly complex issues involved in a possible cessation or limitation of nuclear weapons testing. Although there is considerable literature advocating and opposing a test ban, this collection makes a unique contribution with its integrated treatment of the technical and political aspects of such action. Written by international experts in physics, weapons design, seismology, law, and politics, the essays present a wide range of opinions which are concisely summarized in the editors' introduction. Specifically, the topics include the problems of nuclear explosions; the significance of continued testing for the development of new weapons designs; a historical survey of test ban negotiations; the existing technical capabilities for detecting possible violations of a test ban; the attitudes of certain nations toward a test ban; and the possible military and political consequences of a test ban. The articles are supplemented by charts, illustrations, and appendixes. An excellent resource for upper-division undergraduates and graduate students of international relations and national security, and for the informed layperson interested in this crucial debate. -A. C. Titus, University of Nevada, Las Vegas