Comments for Technology and Culture http://etc.technologyandculture.net The International Quarterly of the Society for the History of Technology Mon, 12 May 2008 01:25:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 Comment on Considering the Unthinkable: Chemical Weapons in Modern Warfare by Charles Stephenson http://etc.technologyandculture.net/2008/04/20/considering-the-unthinkable-chemical-weapons-in-modern-warfare/#comment-20 Charles Stephenson Fri, 02 May 2008 11:31:31 +0000 http://etc.technologyandculture.net/2008/04/20/considering-the-unthinkable-chemical-weapons-in-modern-warfare/#comment-20 I am grateful to Dr. Showalter for his favourable comments towards The Admiral’s Secret Weapon: Lord Dundonald and the Origins of Chemical Warfare. He is certainly correct in arguing that the ‘concluding hypothesis’ he mentions - that in the early stages of World War I crucial elements of the “Plans” fell into German hands and inspired their initial use of poison gas – is not entirely credible, and that is the reason why I argued exactly the opposite case. On p. 140 I wrote: ‘if it be deemed permissible to employ a legal metaphor, had Lord Dundonald been charged with, albeit unwittingly, supplying the thought behind the German [1914] chemical warfare scheme, he would, on the evidence, have been found ‘Not Guilty’.’ A little later, on p. 143, I go on to say: ‘The evolution [of early German chemical warfare techniques] required no intervention from any long-dead admiral, or indeed his still-living grandson; it was a logical progression in the search for an effective weapon [. . .].’ This matter is, I think, one that should be stated clearly, otherwise anyone reading Dr. Showalter’s otherwise excellent piece runs the risk of being seriously misled. I am grateful to Dr. Showalter for his favourable comments towards The Admiral’s Secret Weapon: Lord Dundonald and the Origins of Chemical Warfare. He is certainly correct in arguing that the ‘concluding hypothesis’ he mentions - that in the early stages of World War I crucial elements of the “Plans” fell into German hands and inspired their initial use of poison gas – is not entirely credible, and that is the reason why I argued exactly the opposite case.

On p. 140 I wrote: ‘if it be deemed permissible to employ a legal metaphor, had Lord Dundonald been charged with, albeit unwittingly, supplying the thought behind the German [1914] chemical warfare scheme, he would, on the evidence, have been found ‘Not Guilty’.’

A little later, on p. 143, I go on to say: ‘The evolution [of early German chemical warfare techniques] required no intervention from any long-dead admiral, or indeed his still-living grandson; it was a logical progression in the search for an effective weapon [. . .].’

This matter is, I think, one that should be stated clearly, otherwise anyone reading Dr. Showalter’s otherwise excellent piece runs the risk of being seriously misled.

]]> Comment on The Missing Link: Assessing the Reliability of Internet Citations in History Journals by RTP3.com » Blog Archive » A History Problem - Internet Citations http://etc.technologyandculture.net/2008/04/20/the-missing-link-assessing-the-reliability-of-internet-citations-in-history-journals/#comment-15 RTP3.com » Blog Archive » A History Problem - Internet Citations Tue, 22 Apr 2008 10:59:47 +0000 http://etc.technologyandculture.net/2008/04/20/the-missing-link-assessing-the-reliability-of-internet-citations-in-history-journals/#comment-15 [...] journal of SHOT, they raise an interesting issue - the reliability and stability of internet links. Edmund Russell and Jennifer Kane examine whether issues raised within the sciences are pertinent to ... and their conclusion is that they are. To quote their conclusion: The World Wide Web has offered an [...] [...] journal of SHOT, they raise an interesting issue - the reliability and stability of internet links. Edmund Russell and Jennifer Kane examine whether issues raised within the sciences are pertinent to … and their conclusion is that they are. To quote their conclusion: The World Wide Web has offered an [...]

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