Nuclear War Survival Skills
by Cresson H. Kearny · first published 1980
61% recommend39% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Practical handbook on expedient nuclear war survival, organized by what to do in each phase. It counters fatalistic myths by showing survival is achievable, and it is free online, suiting the curious or preparing.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
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Yeah I downloaded it last time I got paranoid about nuclear equipped super-powers falling out with each other. (In case of real emergency, maybe the paper version :- https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nuclear-War-Survival-Skills-Instruc...) If you can put aside my prepper-paranoia then I suggest it's a good practical and insightful read. There are many tips in there that would serve you well during any disaster, man made or…
on “Nuclear War Survival Skills (1987) [pdf]” ↗I really am tired of my tech career, and don't think I would mind trying to learn subsistence farming whilst trying to avoid radiation poisoning. For more information, please consult "Nuclear War Survival Skills" by Cresson H. Kearny. https://www.amazon.com/dp/094248701X Also, FTA: "The Robock group’s models are probably overestimating the risk [of nuclear winter]." Citation needed, maybe?
on “Nuclear war is unlikely to cause human extinction?” ↗…phase. He makes a real point of saying that it wouldn't be the end of the world and is very survivable; people get a much more depressing and fatalistic view sometimes. Cheer up. [ https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nuclear-War-Survival-Skills-Instruc... ]
on “How to Survive a Nuclear War: The York Experiment” ↗…don't worry, sooner or later nuclear weapons will again be used in anger :-(, and a lot more people and nations will get serious about surviving them. If you want be prepared today, take a gander at Nuclear War Survival Skills, the book on expedient nuclear war survival: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_War_Survival_Skills (Note you need the real, green cover book to get the correct scale diagrams to make a Kearny Fallout…
on “The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined (2012)” ↗Here's my recommendations from the classic era of survivalism (mid-late-70s through the '80s): Nuclear War Survival Skills, get a PDF to see if it's interesting to you (e.g. http://www.oism.org/nwss/), get the green softcover for when the lights go out and for accurate patterns for the Kearny Fallout Meter: http://www.amazon.com/Nuclear-War-Survival-Skills-Expanded/d...…
on “How the Apocalypse Will Bring Out the Best in People” ↗…printed instructions to an "average" American family, video taping them trying to follow them, and iterating on them. Oh, yeah, in the traditional fashion, the author(s) tried out this stuff themselves: Nuclear War Survival Skills Check out the official on-line copy here: http://www.oism.org/nwss/ but if you're worried about a nuclear weapon event, get the dead tree copy, for the Kearny Fallout Meter needs better precision than…
on “Confessions of a Former Apocalypse Survival Guide Writer” ↗The hysteria over nuclear war has definitely done great harm to civil defense and preparedness in the USA. I have a print copy of Nuclear War Survival Skills[1] that I review regularly because an hour a year seems worth it to me. [1] https://www.amazon.com/Nuclear-War-Survival-Skills-Expanded/...
on “Nuclear war is unlikely to cause human extinction?” ↗This is a common misconception. I highly recommend having a read through the book "Nuclear War Survival Skills" by Kearny. It's an older book more focused on the Cold War, but still highly relevant today. It systematically dispels this kind of myth. You can find PDF copies online or pick up a used copy cheap.
on “Ask HN: Do you think nuclear armageddon is plausible?” ↗…westerns populations, especially here in EU are not that sold to any specific propaganda and we are already on the brink on a civil war... Make your conclusions. I suggest to read an ancient USA book: Nuclear War Survival Skills by Cresson H. Kearny, Edward Teller also available for free for some past editions https://www.oism.org/nwss/ and you can read how the USA have always imaging nukes tactical usage.
Read "Nuclear War Survival Skills" by Cresson Kearny [1]. You can find a pdf online. If you live a distance from a city center and you can work from home, try to do that when tensions are high. Nuclear bombs are not that powerful. By…
on “Ask HN: How should one prepare for nuclear war nowadays?” ↗…and Holl - Atoms for Peace and War around pg 181 (free pdf history book) https://www.energy.gov/management/downloads/hewlett-and-holl... [2] https://whatisnuclear.com/img/castle-bravo-if-on-dc.png [3] Nuclear War Survival Skills (free pdf book) https://www.oism.org/nwss/
on “Those who witnessed Castle Bravo looked into Armageddon” ↗Nuclear war is surprisingly survivable if you aren't unlucky and know what you're doing. See Nuclear War Survival Skills, a free PDF put out by Oak Ridge National Laboratory: http://oism.org/nwss/nwss.pdf Basically - you're only toast if you're within the fireball, radiation, and moderate blast damage radius. If you're…
on “Ask HN: Is anyone else genuinely scared that this is the start of WW3?” ↗"Nuclear war survival skills" is actually a very interesting book. Not the kind of practical guide you'd ever want to be in need of, but it contains lots of fascinating insights about life in a society where the social structure…
on “No Deleterious Effects of Increased Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide - 31,000 Scientists sign Petition” ↗…Of course, you could argue that the current situation with Iran is the sort of thing you'd expect by our not continuing an ultra hard line on NP. Me, I'm going to continue to keep handy my copies of Nuclear War Survival Skills along with all the other stuff I collected during the Cold War, including my mother's Civil Defense Block Mother sign, back from the late '60s when we still cared about the survival of the nation.
on “Obama announces nuclear breakthrough on landmark India trip” ↗…expect to be able to use them. If the event is known, then the book list can be adjusted. For example, if it's nuclear, then "The Nuclear War Survival Guide" is a must-have: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_War_Survival_Skills
on “Ask HN: Source to Rebuilding Civilization?” ↗