Greek Fire, Poison Arrows, and Scorpion Bombs

Author: Adrienne Mayor
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1590203747
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 327

Book Description
"A comprehensive look at WMD's antecedents, from flamethrowers of the Peloponnesian War to plague-bearing booby traps.... Rich and entertaining." -Newsweek Featuring a new introduction by the author. Flamethrowers, poison gases, incendiary bombs, the large-scale spreading of disease... are these terrifying agents and implements of warfare modern inventions? Not by a long shot. Weapons of biological and chemical warfare have been in use for thousands of years, and Greek Fire, Poison Arrows & Scorpion Bombs, Adrienne Mayor's fascinating exploration of the origins of biological and unethical warfare draws extraordinary connections between the mythical worlds of Hercules and the Trojan War, the accounts of Herodotus and Thucydides, and modern methods of war and terrorism. Greek Fire, Poison Arrows & Scorpion Bombs will catapult readers into the dark and fascinating realm of ancient war and mythic treachery-and their devastating consequences.

Poison Arrows

Author: David E. Jones
Publisher: University of Texas Press
ISBN: 0292779712
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 137

Book Description
A comprehensive survey of organic compounds used as poisons—on arrows and spears, in food, and even as insecticides—by numerous Native American tribes. Biological warfare is a menacing twenty-first-century issue, but its origins extend to antiquity. While the recorded use of toxins in warfare in some ancient populations is rarely disputed (the use of arsenical smoke in China, which dates to at least 1000 BC, for example) the use of “poison arrows” and other deadly substances by Native American groups has been fraught with contradiction. At last revealing clear documentation to support these theories, anthropologist David Jones transforms the realm of ethnobotany in Poison Arrows. Examining evidence within the few extant descriptive accounts of Native American warfare, along with grooved arrowheads and clues from botanical knowledge, Jones builds a solid case to indicate widespread and very effective use of many types of toxins. He argues that various groups applied them to not only warfare but also to hunting, and even as an early form of insect extermination. Culling extensive ethnological, historical, and archaeological data, Jones provides a thoroughly comprehensive survey of the use of ethnobotanical and entomological compounds applied in wide-ranging ways, including homicide and suicide. Although many narratives from the contact period in North America deny such uses, Jones now offers conclusive documentation to prove otherwise. A groundbreaking study of a subject that has been long overlooked, Poison Arrows imparts an extraordinary new perspective to the history of warfare, weaponry, and deadly human ingenuity. “A unique contribution to the field of American Indian ethnology. . . . This information has never been compiled before, and I doubt that many ethnologists in the field have ever suspected the extent to which poison was used among North American Indians. This book significantly extends our understanding.” —Wayne Van Horne, Associate Professor of Anthropology, Kennesaw State University

Poisoned Arrows

Author: George Monbiot
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Asmat (Indonesian people)
Languages : en
Pages : 280

Book Description
Verslag van een reis door Indonesisch West-Nieuw-Guinea waarbij het lot van de door de Indonesische autoriteiten in hun traditionele bestaan bedreigde Papoea's centraal staat.

Cupid's Poisoned Arrow

Author: Marnia Robinson
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
ISBN: 1556438095
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 417

Book Description
“If you want to be a better lover and have an amazing relationship (now or in the future), Cupid's Poisoned Arrow is a must-read.” —real reader review Eyes met, sparks flew—all fireworks and passion. In the beginning, it felt like magic…but somewhere along the way, the flame burnt out. That cute quirk you used to love doesn’t seem so cute anymore. The connection and fire that brought you together are lost—and you may feel hurt, unsure, or disconnected. You might be trying in vain to change your partner. You may even resign yourself to a passionless fate. Ancient sages recognized the lull in intimacy, passion, and connection that happens in even the most solid relationships—and hinted at the ways we can overcome it. With an entertaining blend of personal experiences, neuroscientific research, and amorous insights from around the world, Cupid’s Poisoned Arrow shows that we can use lovemaking to balance one another—and let harmony arise naturally. Here, you’ll discover the twenty-one Exchanges, a series of intimacy-building activities that can help you and your partner connect on a deeper level. These exchanges speak directly to the part of your brain that can fall in love—and stay in love—and are based on touch, eye contact, and attentiveness. By focusing on generous pampering rather than self-stimulation, you can create a nourishing cocoon of comfort and safety…and deepen your connection through bonding-based intimacy. Incorporating the principles of yin and yang, the Exchanges offer a balanced approach that emphasizes giving and receiving to spark a fulfilling sexual connection between you and your partner. Discover why real readers are saying “It works!” and “I wish I had read this book 10 years ago.” You’ll never look back.

Poisoned Arrows

Author: Shagdariin Sandag
Publisher: Westview Press
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 256

Book Description
"This book is based on secret archival documents and other rare materials to which the public was granted access following Mongolia's 1989-1990 democratic revolution. Sandag's father was a victim of the massacres, adding a personal element to the story.

From Poison Arrows to Prozac

Author: Stanley Feldman
Publisher: Metro Publishing
ISBN: 1857828437
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 169

Book Description
Stanley Feldman is a leading light in the field of modern anaesthetics, a former Professor of Anaesthetics at London University and was appointed to the Imperial College School of Medicine. He is the author of many books, papers and lectures on the subject. He is also the author of Life Begins..., a positive guide to retirement, and co-editor of the acclaimed Panic Nation with Vincent Marks.

Poison Arrows

Author: Morag Prunty
Publisher: Pan MacMillan
ISBN: 9780330420310
Category : Angels
Languages : en
Pages : 369

Book Description
Christian is blond haired, blue eyed and not just your average good-looking boy - he's an angel. And when he's sent down from the heavenly offices above to sort out the love lives of the citizens of Gorb, a small town in the West of Ireland, he thinks he's got an easy billet.

Summary of Adrienne Mayor's Greek Fire, Poison Arrows, and Scorpion Bombs

Author: Everest Media,
Publisher: Everest Media LLC
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 34

Book Description
Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 The first biological weapon was invented by the Greek hero Hercules, and the roots of the concept go back even before the Greek myths were written down by Homer in the eighth century BC. Poison and arrows were deeply intertwined in the ancient Greek language itself. #2 Hercules was tasked with killing the Hydra, a monster that had many heads. He used fire to cauterize each neck as he chopped off a head, to prevent it from sprouting new ones. But the middle head was immortal. He hacked it off and buried it alive. #3 The first victims of Hercules’ arrows were some of his oldest friends. When he attended a party hosted by his Centaur friend, the half-man, half-horse, Pholus, many Centaurs were felled by Hercules’ poisoned arrows. #4 The myth of Hercules and the Hydra shows the dangers of self-inflicted wounds or accidents with poison projectiles. Even a scratch could be devastating, and the Hydra poison multiplied in power as it spread through Hercules’ body.

Toxicology in Antiquity

Author:
Publisher: Academic Press
ISBN: 0128153407
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 511

Book Description
Toxicology in Antiquity provides an authoritative and fascinating exploration into the use of toxins and poisons in antiquity. It brings together the two previously published shorter volumes on the topic, as well as adding considerable new information. Part of the History of Toxicology and Environmental Health series, it covers key accomplishments, scientists, and events in the broad field of toxicology, including environmental health and chemical safety. This first volume sets the tone for the series and starts at the very beginning, historically speaking, with a look at toxicology in ancient times. The book explains that before scientific research methods were developed, toxicology thrived as a very practical discipline. People living in ancient civilizations readily learned to distinguish safe substances from hazardous ones, how to avoid these hazardous substances, and how to use them to inflict harm on enemies. It also describes scholars who compiled compendia of toxic agents. New chapters in this edition focus chiefly on evidence for the use of toxic agents derived from religious texts. - Provides the historical background for understanding modern toxicology - Illustrates the ways previous civilizations learned to distinguish safe from hazardous substances, how to avoid the hazardous substances and how to use them against enemies - Explores the way famous historical figures used toxins - New chapters focus on evidence of the use of toxins derived from religious texts

Toxicon & Arachne

Author: Joyelle McSweeney
Publisher: Hachette UK
ISBN: 1472156048
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 121

Book Description
'The power of McSweeney's work cannot be separated from its association with forms of oracle and soothsaying, and so it is uncanny that it should arrive in the middle of a global pandemic... Frightening and brilliant' Dan Chiasson, New Yorker How does the body gestate grief? How does toxicity birth catastrophe? In the months leading up to her daughter Arachne's birth, US poet Joyelle McSweeney set out to write a quiver of poems like a quiver of poison arrows: formally and sonically virtuosic, laced with the poet's obsessive concerns with contamination, decay and the sublime, featuring a crown of 'toxic sonnets' for the tuberculosis bacterium that killed Keats. But when Arachne was born with an unexpected birth defect, lived briefly and died, the poet was visited by a second welter of poems, odes of love, grief, perplexity and rage. These two books, Toxicon & Arachne, form a double collection of poems weighing love, grief, art and survival in increasingly toxic days. Toxicon & Arachne is the culmination of eight years of engagement with lyric under a regime of global and personal catastrophes.