Disappearing Spoon

This is a new book. Condition: Brand New.

Fascinating and hilarious true stories from the Periodic Table - Shortlisted for the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books 2011

Why did Gandhi hate iodine (I, 53)? Why did the Japanese kill Godzilla with missiles made of cadmium (Cd, 48)? How did radium (Ra, 88) nearly ruin Marie Curie's reputation? And why did tellurium (Te, 52) lead to the most bizarre gold rush in history?

The periodic table is one of our crowning scientific achievements, but it's also a treasure trove of passion, adventure, betrayal and obsession. The fascinating tales in The Disappearing Spoon follow carbon, neon, silicon, gold and every single element on the table as they play out their parts in human history, finance, mythology, conflict, the arts, medicine and the lives of the (frequently) mad scientists who discovered them.

Why did a little lithium (Li, 3) help cure poet Robert Lowell of his madness? And how did gallium (Ga, 31) become the go-to element for laboratory pranksters? The Disappearing Spoon has the answers, fusing science with the classic lore of invention, investigation, discovery and alchemy, from the big bang through to the end of time.

Book details and technical specifications

Format: Paperback / softback
ISBN13: 9780552777506
Published: July 2011

Number of pages: 400
Width: 128 mm
Height: 198 mm
Depth: 28 mm

Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd