yup, nuclear war apps exist

I'm teaching a class on the U.S. since 1979 this year, so we are spending some time talking about the Reagan military buildup and the anti-nuclear movement in the early eighties. This means we are also talking about the meaning of possible nuclear war, which is not actually something my students have spent much time thinking about.  I was surprised, but then again the Cold War is paleolithic to them in most respects, even in a military town.

So, to focus the mind, it was necessary for the class first to listen to the Minutemen circa 1983, who keep thinking about World War III.

The onto to this weirdly compelling nuclear war app, which allows you to track the devasation of a wide array of weapons (from 1945 early U.S. bombs to the largest in the arsenals to recent North Korean sized weapons) on any map you wish.  (There are actually quite a few similar programs.)

Here is the radius for a Minutemen missle landing on my house. 

And to the size of the damage that would be produced by the largest Soveit-era weapon tested.  This one would take out all my far-flung beeyards too! 

You can admit a certain morbid interest.

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