gee i wish we had one of them doomsday
machines welcome to watch mojo's top
five facts
in today's installment we're counting
down the top five facts about
super weapons come along as we explore
the real world of revolutionary and
far-flung tours of war as well as their
odd and terrifying history
number five they aren't always giant
physical war machines
that's it that's their super weapon what
were you expecting
when we think of super weapons in the
modern sense weapons of mass destruction
like nuclear warheads come to mind
but a super weapon isn't defined by its
size or curb appeal
all that matters is its ability to do
serious damage
now that nearly everything important is
stored on computer servers
a well-coordinated cyber attack can be
arguably more devastating than most
physical weapons of war
the crash override malware also known as
in-destroyer took down the entirety of
kiev's power grid in 2016
and in 2009 a computer whim stuxnet
was used to seriously damage iran's
nuclear program
it seems that the next generation of
wars may be fought with keyboards
number four some of the incomplete ones
were true works of science fiction
it's every dictator's dream to have the
ultimate super weapon
a tool so powerful they can bring the
entire world to its knees
with the simple threat of its use over
the years
this never-ending arms race has produced
some rather far-flung concepts
famed inventor nicola tesla's proposed
teleforce
often referred to as the death ray was a
particle launcher
which by tesla's own estimation could
bring down a fleet of 10
000 enemy airplanes at a distance of 200
miles
perhaps the most outlandish theoretical
super weapon in human history however
was the nazi sun gun a 3.5 square mile
nine square kilometer reflector launched
into space
that could burn the earth like a giant
magnifying glass
oh please that can cause far more
collateral damage than that
karen where did you put my death ray
number three they have a tendency to not
work out
over here maybe some theoretical super
weapons fail because of shoddy or
overly optimistic science but
historically speaking
they tend to fail more often than not
because they're simply too ambitious
imagination is limitless but resources
are not
the ussr worked on numerous colossal war
machines over the years
but most of them from aircraft carriers
battleships tanks and heavy bombers
failed they would have ruled the air
london sea
but they took so long and required such
skilled labor
that they were often abandoned
mid-project those that made it into the
field usually suffered mechanical
failure quickly
so while they had the potential to be
highly intimidating
superweapons have a risk of being a
colossal waste of money
gee i wish we had one of them doomsday
machines dainty
number two nazi germany was notoriously
into their vundevafer
more so than arguably any other nation
in history nazi germany firmly believed
that their so-called
miracle weapons would win them the war
the
whole point of the doomsday machine
is lost if you keep it the secret why
didn't you tell the world eh
no other country could keep up with the
nazi's speed of production
imagination or diversity when it came to
over-the-top war machines
the v1 and v2 long-range missiles were
both
devastatingly effective when used in
combat but the super gun known as the v3
cannon with its 310 pound shells
and 102.5 mile range received limited
use
the nazis also developed the first radio
guided bomb fritz x
the heavy gustav and dora 800 millimeter
railway guns
and countless boats planes and tanks
among the dozens of vandavatas developed
the kugelpanzer
aspherical reconnaissance tank is
arguably the strangest prototype
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on notifications number one they've
existed for many years
we tend to think of super weapons as
technological wonders
but they don't have to be high tech in
the modern sense
examples of super weapons can actually
be found in pretty much
every culture and civilization across
recorded history
[Applause]
a super weapon is anything new
innovative and efficient in war that
gives one side a substantial leg up in
combat at the time
in 4th century bc the juga crossbow was
the first of its kind
a semi-automatic crossbow that allowed
soldiers to fire multiple bolts in quick
succession
the byzantine navy employed greek fire
flamethrowers to devastate their enemies
at sea
as early as the 13th century song
dynasty china had gun powder based
rockets do you agree with our picks
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