BOOKS
The High Price of Progress Reviewed by Theo Colborn
Both the title "High Tech Holocaust" and the title of its introduction, "A Pact with the Devil," provide clues to the tone of this paperback published by the Sierra Club. They express James Bellini's outrage over the price humankind is paying as industry and wealth seekers profit from modern technology. Readers of C&EN may well be interested in Bellini's message, but they also will expect him to support his statements with citations from the scientific literature. Unfortunately, Bellini, a British television commentator on global social and economic trends, provides less than four pages of "soft" The benefits of a highreferences for a 251-page book in which decisive statements are made tech society carry with on almost every page. "High Tech Holocaust" will nev- them enormous costs that er be a second "Silent Spring," people too often just which had 54 pages of sources and references to support 297 pages of blithely ignore text. It also lacks the authenticity of books such as those written by Paul and Anne Ehrlich in which each "High Tech Holocaust" by James forecast is supported with citations. Bellini, Sierra Club Books, 730 Polk Instead, "High Tech Holocaust" is St., San Francisco, Calif. 94109,1989, an outpouring of anecdotal and cir- 264 pages, $10.95 cumstantial information spiced with case studies. However, Bellini is often correct. He contends that people have ac- accurate the rest of the book is. For cepted all the benefits of a high-tech instance, when discussing the vast society while blithely ignoring the amount of human excrement worldcost of doing business in a modern wide that is treated each day in world. The euphoria of easy living aquatic systems, he says, "bacteria has delayed recognition that at present in the water use up quantisome point Earth's life-support sys- ties of oxygen—the O in H2O." I do tems no longer can absorb the not know how a statement like this shocks of our chemical society. Bel- managed to get past his editors and lini sums up all the price tags in- reviewers. Where does one find volved in living in such a highly these water-splitting microorgantechnical society. When the items isms? Perhaps a few mistakes are acare lined up one by one, the list ceptable, for much in his book is eiseems exhaustive, and at times the ther correct or at least expresses a reading becomes exhausting—and legitimate viewpoint. depressing as well. In another instance, Bellini states Unfortunately, every now and that "one drop [of dioxin] is capable then he makes an impossible state- of killing as many as 1200 people." ment, causing me to wonder how It would have been helpful if Bellini
told how he arrived at this amazing figure. Granted, under no circumstances would I want to be exposed to a drop of dioxin. However, chloracne, a skin condition, is the only overt human health effect known to be directly associated with exposure to dioxin (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin). There is clear evidence that dioxin is an animal carcinogen, but there is no unequivocal human evidence. Evidence is accumulating, however, of the metabolic, immunotoxic, and developmental effects of dioxin, conditions that are subtle and for which measuring techniques currently are being developed. Apocalyptic books written by authors who are not specialists often create breaches between the general public, who leans on them as authoritative, and specialists, who have in-depth knowledge of one or more of the issues under discussion. Unfortunately, few of the problems facing society today are limited to a single discipline. Bellini attempts to cover the entire range of these problems, and in so doing has put himself in a precarious position with the experts in each of the disciplines. For instance, Bellini opens with a discussion of Bhopal, India, and Institute, W.Va., and eventually covers the hazards of methyl isocyanate, smoke, air toxics, vinyl chloride, asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls, dioxin, thalidomide, and cadmium, as well as Love Canal and other major chemical disasters and waste disposal hazards. Topics discussed in other chapters include noise pollution, liquid natural gas, food additives and substitutes, heavy metals, acid rain, ocean disposal, and pesticide use. Because of the book's scope, a battery of reviewers would be needed to critique "High Tech Holocaust" thoroughly. Having little knowledge of the nuclear industry, for example, I cannot verify Bellini's statements concerning it. However, when pointing out the mistakes October 30, 1989 C&EN
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Nicholas-Louis Robert invented the paper machine...
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n 1798 Nicholas Louis-Robert, a clerk in the Didot publishing Company in Paris, became impatient with the laborious process of paper making and the petty disputes of the workers. H is solution for doing away with some of the hand labor resulted in a crude, crank-operated machine which formed paper by depositing liquid pulp on a length of wire screen. Robert lived to see many machines (manufactured and marketed by the RDurdrinier brothers) operating in paper mills. He also received 3000 francs in recognition of his work from the French government. Yet he died a penniless schoolmaster.
Roberts paper machine was a vast improvement over previous technologies but papermaking was still a slow procedure. Today paper making and printing are high speed processes and uses for paper have grown. Because Fourdriniers now run at speeds of over 3000 feet per minute (up to 100 km/hr), high levels of energy are required to dry the paper, large volumes of water are recycled, and effluent problems arise. The chemical
division of Ak/o has created a number of paper chemicals to answer these and other problems For many problems our solution has been to create entirely new chemical systems. Akzo offers chemicals for improving pnntabihtv. wet strength, debonding pulp, defoaming. demk ing, and water resistance. Were ewn mu'stiga ting ways of preserving old paper .uici making sure that new paper will last for years Asa mann of fact, the chemical division of Ak/o offers ;• ' ?< than 4000 chemical products to inciustrv I h< s< are produced at 60 sites worldwide -n ( uropi Asia, North c)nd South America and Australia Today, Ak/o Chemicals are helping to f»>(/« '>
