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Original Essays | April 29, 2013

Edward Lee: IMG How to Clarify Butter: A Writer's Tale

2 comments By Edward Lee

Chefs don't have time to write. While I was working on Smoke and Pickles, I was running a restaurant — a daily regimen of testing recipes,... Continue »
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    Smoke and Pickles: Recipes and Stories from a New Southern Kitchen

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1 Burnside - Bldg. 2 Chemistry- General

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

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

ISBN13: 9780061824739
ISBN10: 0061824739
Condition: Standard
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Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

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. 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.

Synopsis:

In the spirit of A Short History of Nearly Everything comes Periodic Tales. Award-winning science writer Hugh Andersey-Williams offers readers a captivating look at the elements—and the amazing, little-known stories behind their discoveries. Periodic Tales is an energetic and wide-ranging book of innovations and innovators, of superstition and science and the myriad ways the chemical elements are woven into our culture, history, and language. It will delight readers of Genome, Einsteins Dreams, Longitude, and The Age of Wonder. 
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About the Author

Hugh Aldersey-Williams is the author of numerous books on architecture, design, and science, including Panicology and The Most Beautiful Molecule, which was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. He lives in Norfolk, England.
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What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 1 comment:
Celina, March 6, 2012 (view all comments by Celina)
Periodic Tales is a fascinating look at the elements, each in its own 5-10 page section on how it was discovered and how it's been used. I've been reading it at the breakfast table, a section at a time (there are even shorter subsections if you're in a rush). From Wallis Simpson's ideas on when to wear gold vs. platinum to the (outlawed) use of white phosphorus in wartime to the lead-based sculptures of Antony Gormley and Anselm Kiefer, this book has changed the way I look at everyday things.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9780061824739
Author:
Aldersey Williams, Hugh
Publisher:
Ecco Press
Author:
Aldersey-Williams, Hugh
Subject:
General science
Subject:
Science Reference-General
Subject:
Chemistry - General
Edition Description:
Trade PB
Publication Date:
20120231
Binding:
TRADE PAPER
Language:
English
Pages:
448
Dimensions:
8 x 5.3125 x 1.00901 in 11.2 oz
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Periodic Tales: A Cultural History of the Elements, from Arsenic to Zinc Used Trade Paper
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Product details 448 pages Ecco Press - English 9780061824739 Reviews:
"Synopsis" by , In the spirit of A Short History of Nearly Everything comes Periodic Tales. Award-winning science writer Hugh Andersey-Williams offers readers a captivating look at the elements—and the amazing, little-known stories behind their discoveries. Periodic Tales is an energetic and wide-ranging book of innovations and innovators, of superstition and science and the myriad ways the chemical elements are woven into our culture, history, and language. It will delight readers of Genome, Einsteins Dreams, Longitude, and The Age of Wonder. 
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