This article was talking about a process that works but those studying the process did not know WHY it worked. When the first atom bomb was detonated the people who built it knew how the bomb was supposed to work in theory but there was still some doubt about other possible outcomes.
"9 times the world was at the brink of nuclear war" It is probably been more than 9 times but there are no unknowns or doubts about the damage a nuclear bomb would produce.
The scariest scenario we face today comes from bioweapons. It takes far less resources to create a bioweapon when compared to building a nuclear weapon. And countries around the world are creating bioweapons in order to create countermeasures. We are one laboratory screwup or one demented scientist away from having to battle the walking dead.