Written in an easy-to-understand style, the book describes the nuances of technological development in a purely scientific manner and provides a social perspective to their relevance for future warfare and for issues such as disarmament and arms control, as well as their impact on the environment. The book begins with a focus on the research going on in several developed countries in the last decade-some of them for nearly two decades now-and then narrows its focus on India and a few developing countries.