CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL WEAPONSPeriod 9/10

Kristen Sposetta, Aaron Mohr, Destanee Goosby, Taylor Host

DEFINITIONS

Chemical Weapons (also called “the poor man’s atomic bomb”) - chemical substances that can be delivered using munitions and dispersal devices to cause death or severe harm to people, animals, and plants

Biological Weapons (also called “germ weapon”) - a weapon of mass destruction that uses a biological agent or pathogen such as bacteria or a virus that is harmful to people and plants

The use of biological weapons against an enemy for hostile purposes or during armed conflict is called biological warfare

PROS/ADVANTAGES

Easy to produce and quantify Cheaper than nuclear weapons and overall

cheapest weapon Easy to conceal Conventional weapons (bombs, grenades, etc.)

explode once, kill a few hundred people, mutilate thousands of others. Biological agents, on the other hand, can spread from person to person, killing more of the enemy

Chemical weapons can give an army a tactical, battlefield advantage

CONS/DISADVANTAGES

Backfire, since containment is difficult once a contagious disease has begun spreading

Difficult to deliver to the enemy Does not immediately incapacitate an enemy,

other weaponry is more effective Unpredictable, you may infect your own

troops Lasts for a long time, for example, anthrax

can live in soil for up to 50 years

EXAMPLES OF BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS Bacteria- such as anthrax, brucellosis,

tularemia, and plague Viruses- intracellular parasites, smallpox,

and yellow fever Fungi- pathogens that can be weaponized

for use against crops to cause disease Toxins- poisons that are weaponized after

extraction from snakes, insects, spiders, marine organisms and other animals

EXAMPLES OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS

Mustard gas, Sarin, Chlorine, hydrogen cyanide, tear gas, poisoned arrows, boiling tar, and arsenic smoke

Substances such as inflammatory or combustible mixtures, smokes, or gases that can irritate, burn, incapacitate, and poison

The first chemical weapon used effectively in battle was chlorine gas, which burns and destroys lung tissue

Tear gas

Mustard gas

Chemical Weapon Examples

Syria attack, artillery rocket

WORKS CITED

"Brief History of Chemical Weapons Use." Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 1927. <http://www.opcw.org/about-chemical-weapons/history-of-cw-use/>.

"chemical weapon." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/108951/chemical-weapon>.

"biological weapon." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/938340/biological-weapon>.

"Advantages of using biological weapons." ThinkQuest. Oracle Foundation, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. <http://library.thinkquest.org/27393/dreamwvr/warfare/introduction2.htm>.

"PressTV - KSA behind Syria chemical attack: Russian source." PressTV - KSA behind Syria chemical attack: Russian source. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. <http://www.presstv.com/detail/2013/10/05/327634/saudi-arabia-behind-syria-chem-attack/>.

"Syria chemical attack: What we know." BBC News. BBC, 24 Sept. 2013. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23927399>.

"Kirsch Foundation Nuclear Disarmament." Kirsch Foundation Nuclear Disarmament. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. <http://www.kirschfoundation.org/care/chemical.html>.

"Why are we so afraid of chemical weapons?." New Internationalist All posts RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. <http://newint.org/features/web-exclusive/2013/06/19/syria-chemical-weapons-existential-threat/>.

“organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons.” OPCW. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Oct. 2013. http://www.opcw.org/about-chemical-weapons.