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Genetic Warhead | 
 enlarge | Author: Paul Ainsworth
Publisher: Janus Publishing Company
Category: Book
Buy New: $25.00
New (7) Used (4) from $15.77
Rating:  1 reviews
Sales Rank: 3262436
Media: Paperback
Pages: 350
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.7 x 0.9
ISBN: 1857565282
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9781857565287
ASIN: 1857565282
Publication Date: March 1, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
The year is 2014 and John Smith, an engineer at Genetic Research Institute in the Nevada desert, is working on the development of a biological warhead for the U.S. government. When a global terrorist organization called The Network highjacks 16 drums of genetically engineered bacteria, a series of apocalyptic events follow—air pollution and global warming cause widespread food shortages and millions die in the United States and Britain from bioterrorist attacks. Desperate, John seeks the help of Dr. Schwarz, a famous Swiss geneticist, who may have a plan to put an end to the unfolding catastrophic events.
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| Customer Reviews:
Trivial and Juvenile August 19, 2008
Taryntoo
From page 29:
"...the problem had always been to get the G.A.1 bacteria to spread when it reaches a target. In order for this to happen G.A.1 has to convert from a liquid to a gas...The boiling point was 126 celsius. Then they heated it slowly and that is when the breakthrough came, as it had time to adjust to its new structure" ... "John heated it slowly, and then told Turner, who was very pleased."That is good Dr. Smith, very good. I will fly back to Washington later today and inform the president", he said gleefully."
For those who have never taken a chemistry or biology course, let me explain that living materials do not have "boiling points". Only elemental molecules, e.g. H2O, have single boiling points. Compounds (mixtures of several different kinds of molecules) have a range of boiling 'steps' where each different kind of molecule separately converts from liquid to vapor state.
A bacteria is a little package of water, lipids, proteins, sugars, and other traces materials. Some of these materials are solids at living temperatures, others liquid or gas. There is no such thing as 'liquid bacteria', or 'gaseous bacteria', though it is common to have many bacteria in liquid suspension, or small clumps and single bacteria to be suspended in the atmosphere.
As you 'slowly heated' a liquid suspension of bacteria, to 126C, it would not convert to a 'bacterial vapor'. First the water around and in the cells would become steam, rupturing the cellular package and killing it. The cell would lose its integrity as lipids and proteins, including the proteins of the DNA were torn apart and carried into atmospheric suspension, or deposited as organic waste on the vessel walls. Even most spores and viruses, simple protein packages, which are far tougher than bacteria, would be ripped apart at these temperatures.
The process the author has completely failed to describe, the 'weaponizing' of diseases, is complex, but does not involve the 'vaporization' of living bacteria. It instead involves the hardening or packaging of a virus or spore, in order that it can be more easily dispersed, either in atmosphere or possibly water supplies. Since the Anthrax attacks of 2001, the general public has come to understand these concepts. The book was copyrighted in 2004.
Along with this laughable science comes laughable dialog, and dozens of hopeless plot cliches. The love story plays out like juvenile fantasy and workplace sexual harassment. From page 6:
"John smiled and walked over to her desk, looking at her long, slender legs. He thought about how good she looked in a miniskirt. "Did you send my memo to Washington, Natalie?", he said in an official tone, but briefly placing his fully flexed hand in the middle of her back. Natalie made no comment on it."
This apparently occurs before John, a career scientist and lead researcher on a federal project, has had any romantic involvement or negotiation with his personal assistant Natalie.
I have to admit that I only managed thirty pages or so, before I gave up on the book. The writing was so trite, and the science so bad, that I came immediately to Amazon to warn off the innocent.
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