A New York Times BestsellerAn eye-opening adventure deep inside the everyday materials that surround us, packed with surprising stories and fascinating scienceWhy is glass see-through? What makes elastic stretchy? Why does a paper clip bend? Why does any material look and behave the way it does? These are the sorts of questions that Mark Miodownik is constantly asking himself. A globally-renowned materials scientist, Miodownik has spent his life exploring objects as ordinary as an envelope and as unexpected as concrete cloth, uncovering the fascinating secrets that hold together our physical world.In Stuff Matters, Miodownik entertainingly examines the materials he encounters in a typical morning, from the steel in his razor and the graphite in his pencil to the foam in his sneakers and the concrete in a nearby skyscraper. He offers a compendium of the most astounding histories and marvelous scientific breakthroughs in the material world, including:
The imprisoned alchemist who saved himself from execution by creating the first European porcelain.The hidden gem of the Milky Way, a planet five times the size of Earth, made entirely of diamond.Graphene, the thinnest, strongest, stiffest material in existence--only a single atom thick--that could be used to make entire buildings sensitive to touch.From the teacup to the jet engine, the silicon chip to the paper clip, the plastic in our appliances to the elastic in our underpants, our lives are overflowing with materials. Full of enthralling tales of the miracles of engineering that permeate our lives, Stuff Matters will make you see stuff in a whole new way.
Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World Mentions in Our Blog
19 Books to Read if You Loved Lessons in Chemistry
Published by Ashly Moore Sheldon • November 05, 2023
Lessons in Chemistry, the bestselling novel by Bonnie Garmus, is the inspiration for a new Apple+ series starring Brie Larson. It is the story of Elizabeth Zott, a brilliant chemist struggling to get ahead in her male-dominated field. It's a great read! And if you're looking for more like that, we've got recs for you.
ThriftBooks sells millions of used books at the lowest everyday prices. We personally assess every book's quality and offer rare, out-of-print treasures. We deliver the joy of reading in recyclable packaging with free standard shipping on US orders over $15. ThriftBooks.com. Read more. Spend less.
