The Disappearing Spoon
Books | Science / History
4
(341)
Sam Kean
From New York Times bestselling author Sam Kean comes incredible stories of science, history, finance, mythology, the arts, medicine, and more, as told by the Periodic Table. Why did Gandhi hate iodine (I, 53)? How did radium (Ra, 88) nearly ruin Marie Curie's reputation? And why is gallium (Ga, 31) the go-to element for laboratory pranksters? The Periodic Table is a crowning scientific achievement, but it's also a treasure trove of adventure, betrayal, and obsession. These fascinating tales follow every element on the table as they play out their parts in human history, and in the lives of the (frequently) mad scientists who discovered them. The Disappearing Spoon masterfully fuses science with the classic lore of invention, investigation, and discovery -- from the Big Bang through the end of time. Though solid at room temperature, gallium is a moldable metal that melts at 84 degrees Fahrenheit. A classic science prank is to mold gallium spoons, serve them with tea, and watch guests recoil as their utensils disappear.
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More Details:
Author
Sam Kean
Pages
400
Publisher
Little, Brown
Published Date
2010-07-12
ISBN
0316089087 9780316089081
Ratings
Google: 4
Community ReviewsSee all
"This book made me want to go back to college and study chemistry! It was a nice balance of stories and teaching. Some scientific concepts were explained more clearly than others, but I was able to follow what was happening for the most part. I will never look at the periodic table of elements the same way again!"
Julie Brough
"I had a surprising amount of fun reading this book, especially considering Chemistry and I have never been great friends throughout my education. Sam Kean managed to add enough pop culture and history into this book that I was excited to continue reading. I will admit that there were points while reading this where I felt my eyes cross a little from the absolutely overwhelming amount of information I was being given. It was never quite at 'textbook' level but I did occasionally feel as though I was attending a lecture that I had not prepared for, and was therefore a bit lost along the way. That being said, the majority of the book is written to be accessible and really doesn't require prior knowledge of chemistry to be able to enjoy and understand."
Giselle Brown
"Dr Mutter’s Medical Marvels "
K C
Kristen Chapman