H. G. Wells 
The World Set Free 

According to Wikipedia.com, ‘Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946) was an English author, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary. Together with Jules Verne, Wells has been referred to as ‘The Father of Science Fiction’. The World Set Free is a novel published in 1914 by H. G. Wells. The book is considered to foretell nuclear weapons. A constant theme of Wells’s work, such as his 1901 nonfiction book Anticipations, was the effect of energy and technological advance as a determinant of human progress. The novel begins: ‘The history of mankind is the history of the attainment of external power. Man is the tool-using, fire-making animal.’