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Title details for Periodic Tales by Hugh Aldersey Williams - Available

Periodic Tales

A Cultural History of the Elements, from Arsenic to Zinc

by Hugh Aldersey Williams
Antony Ferguson
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available
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.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    April 28, 2015

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781494591847
      • File size: 371276 KB
      • Duration: 12:53:29

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      The periodic table of elements is well known to any science student, but the history behind each element is not. Author Williams offers an interesting, informative, and, at times, fun examination of the stories, myths, and people behind each number. Narrator Antony Ferguson's British accent adds just the right touch to the author's style, but that can be a problem. The author mentions several places and people that will be common knowledge to English listeners, but Americans won't understand the references. While none of these will impede basic understanding, the listener may puzzle over them momentarily. Meanwhile, Ferguson has gone on the something else, and the listener must catch up. Also, the scientific details of the stories are used so generously that they become difficult to keep straight. R.C.G. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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