Inventions stem from human brilliance and creativity; they are often driven by a desire to solve a problem or facilitate our lives and/or make them more enjoyable. Yet, even well-intentioned inventions can have the worst consequences; history shows us that some inventions had a negative impact on the world. Let us explore our top five picks, and know why they can be considered the worst-ever inventions.
Nuclear Weapons
Nuclear weapons, also known as nuclear bombs, are the most damaging weapons ever created. Deploying the weapon can destroy entire cities and kill most people living in those cities; moreover, nuclear fallout can make people very sick. The first nuclear weapons were built by the USA during World War II; the only times when they were used in war were to attack two cities in Japan full of civilians—read about the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Albert Einstein, and Leo Szilard.
The idea of a nuclear weapon is based on triggering the nucleus of certain types of atoms, so the device suddenly releases a huge amount of energy in the form of a nuclear explosion. Making nuclear weapons requires highly specialized technology and resources; that is why very few countries have them. However, nuclear is a zero-emission clean energy source. It generates power through fission, which is the process of splitting uranium atoms to produce energy. The most useful byproduct of a controlled fission chain reaction is heat; it can then be used in the same manner as burning fuel to generate electricity (excerpt from the article “The War Industry: A Downside of Technology” by Ahmed Ghoneim, SCIplanet). At the end, this makes nuclear a controversial subject.
References
artsandculture.google.com
bibalex.org/SCIplanet (1), (2), (3), (4), and (5)
britannica.com
energy.gov
healthline.com
kids.britannica.co (1), (2), and (3)
nobelprize.org
unep.org
wikipedia.org
Banner Image: Atom Bomb Nuclear Explosion. Source: wikimedia.org