A Lifelong Quest for Peace: A Dialogue (Echoes and Reflections)

Linus Pauling is celebrated as one of the greatest scientific minds of the last century, whose decisive contributions to an astonishing diversity of fields--including organic and inorganic chemistry, quantum mechanics, molecular biology and medicine--still remain in many respects definitive. Pauling was additionally a tireless campaigner against the perils of nuclear conflict, and his contributions to both science and peace were recognised by the award to him of two separate Nobel Prizes. In this philosophically broad and sinewy book, he engages in complementary discussion with Daisaku Ikeda, President of Soka Gakkai and another tireless champion for peace and dialogue. Showcasing the central ideas and fundamental values of two of the leading pacifist minds of recent times, A Lifelong Quest for Peace ranges over such perennially critical themes as ethics and technology, the appropriate use to which science should be put, the nature of morality and the human quest for progress, justice and equality. Both richly anecdotal and warmly engaging, the discussions offer fascinating insights into and recollections from the interlocutors' early lives and subsequent careers. Pauling and Ikeda thereby demonstrate through warm personal example the essential and lasting value of constructive conversation between people of different backgrounds and contrasting cultures.