The atomic bomb. Rocket-propelled bombs. Jet propulsion. Radar. By failing to develop effective programs for such "secret weapons," Japan increased the probability that it could not triumph over its more advanced enemies. While previous writers have focused primarily on strategic, military, and intelligence factors, Walter Grunden underscores the dramatic scientific and technological disparities that left Japan vulnerable and ultimately led to its defeat in World War II.

Grunden's fascinating analysis of this fundamental flaw in the Japanese war effort seamlessly weaves together science,...