Periodic Tales: A Cultural History of the Elements, from Arsenic to Zinc - Hardcover

Aldersey-Williams, Hugh

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0061824720 ISBN 13: 9780061824722

Publisher: Ecco Pr, 2011

Synopsis

A prize-winning author of The Most Perfect Molecule offers an interesting look at how the periodic elements are woven into our culture, history and language. 20,000 first printing.

About this title

Review:

"A lucid, enjoyable collection . . . that, element by element, demystifies the iconic periodic table."--Kirkus Reviews

"Aldersey-Williams's playful, hands-on approach to scientific exploration shines through the book."--Boston Globe

"[C]harming. . . . Aldersey-Williams writes with simplicity and elegance. The stories may not help you on your next chemistry test, but they'll help you appreciate the building blocks that are all around us yet all too easy to overlook."--Associated Press

"[A] virtuoso tour of the periodic table."--Publishers Weekly

[A] virtuoso tour of the periodic table. --Publishers Weekly"

[C]harming. . . . Aldersey-Williams writes with simplicity and elegance. The stories may not help you on your next chemistry test, but they ll help you appreciate the building blocks that are all around us yet all too easy to overlook. --Associated Press"

A lucid, enjoyable collection . . . that, element by element, demystifies the iconic periodic table. --Kirkus Reviews"

Aldersey-Williams s playful, hands-on approach to scientific exploration shines through the book. --Boston Globe"

For the UK edition: [F]ascinating and beautiful. . . . If only chemistry had been like this at school. . . . [A] rich compilation of delicious tales. --Matt Ridley, "Prospect" magazine"

For the UK edition: "[F]ascinating and beautiful. . . . If only chemistry had been like this at school. . . . [A] rich compilation of delicious tales."--Matt Ridley, Prospect magazine

From the Back Cover:

Like the alphabet, the calendar, or the zodiac, the periodic table of the chemical elements has a permanent place in our imagination. But aside from the handful of common ones (iron, carbon, copper, gold), the elements themselves remain wrapped in mystery. We do not know what most of them look like, how they exist in nature, how they got their names, or of what use they are to us. Welcome to a dazzling tour through history and literature, science and art. In Periodic Tales, you'll meet iron that rains from the heavens and neon as it lights its way to vice. You'll learn how lead can tell your future and why zinc may one day line your coffin. You'll discover what connects the bones in your body with the White House in Washington, the glow of a streetlight with the salt on your dinner table.

From ancient civilizations to contemporary couture, from the oxygen of publicity to the phosphorous in your pee, the elements are near and far and all around us. Unlocking their astonishing secrets and colorful pasts, Periodic Tales is a passionate journey through mines and artists' studios, to factories and cathedrals, into the woods and to the sea to discover the true stories of these fascinating but mysterious building blocks of the universe.

About this edition

• Publisher: Ecco Pr
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0061824720
• ISBN 13: 9780061824722
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 428