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Nature's Building Blocks
An A-Z Guide to the Elements
New Edition
John Emsley
720 pages
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Four black and white figures, and numerous tables
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234x156mm
978-0-19-960563-7
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Paperback
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25 August 2011
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- An accessible and entertaining A-Z guide to the building blocks of ourselves, the earth, and the Universe
- Fully revised and updated to include three new named and validated elements, along with a new 'Deadly element' section and 'Economic element' updates
- Excellent reference source and fascinating 'dip into' read about the elements cited regularly in the news, whether in the context of the environment, our diet, or the world around us
New to this edition - Addition of three new named and validated elements: darmstadtium, roetgenium, and copernicium
- Updates to economic importance and activity of various elements, e.g. Gold and Scandium
- New uses are described, e.g. helium has new uses such as the helium ion microscope
- Entries for the toxic elements; mercury, thallium, lead, arsenic, and antimony have been re-written and updated
- Includes a new section on the 'Deadly element' for those that are dangerously toxic
- Updated Periodic Table included
- All element entries brought up-to-date
John Emsley's Nature's Building Bocks was published in paperback in 2003. In this readable, informative, and fascinating guide to the elements are entries on each of the 100-odd chemical elements, arranged alphabetically from actinium to zirconium. Each entry comprises an explanation of where the element's name comes from, followed by Body element (the role it plays in living things), Element of history (how and when it was discovered), Economic element (what it is used for), Environmental element (where it occurs, how much), Chemical element (facts, figures, and narrative), and Element of surprise (an amazing, little-known fact).
Since publication of the
first edition there have been a number of developments. Three new chemical elements have been named and validated: darmstadtium, roetgenium, and copernicium and the section on 'transfermium elements' has now been incorporated into the main part of the book. Economic uses of elements have grown, and some quite rare elements such as Scandium are now economically important, along with updates to elements such as gold due to new roles in industry. Fully revised and updated for 2010, this browsable compendium holds a wealth of useful information.Readership: General readers with an interest in popular science; professional scientists; chemistry students. Very valuable reference for chemistry students and anyone working
with elements.
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John Emsley, Chemistry Department, University of Cambridge John Emsley won the Science Book prize in 1995 for his Consumer's Good Chemical Guide, and followed this with a series of popular science books: Molecules at an Exhibition, Was it Something You Ate? (co-authored with P. Fell), and The Shocking History of Phosphorus, all of which have been translated into many other languages. After 20 years as a researcher and lecturer in chemistry at London University, he became a freelance writer, as well as Science Writer in Residence, first at Imperial College London and then at Cambridge University. In 2003 he was awarded the German Chemical Society's Writer's Award.
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Review(s) from previous edition
"Review(s) from previous edition
"Emsley's design, layout and presentation is logical, clear and beautifully written. The introduction itself is both informative and full of unexpected, yet valuable information . . . I would recommend the work particularly as an essential bookshelf companion for all teachers of chemistry and as a project resource for students of all levels. - Chemistry in Britain March 2002
". . . [an] astonishingly comprehensive survey of nature's fundamental ingredients . . ." - New York Times 02/04/2002
"A readable and entertaining guide . . . Doubles as both an accessible reference source and an enjoyable and fascinating 'dip into' read." - Materials World 01/12/02
"What for many might be a dry and dusty collection of facts has been turned into an amusing and finely crafted set of mini-biographies. . . . This is a fine, amusing and quirky book that will sit as comfortably on an academic's bookshelf as beside the loo . . ." - Nature, 01/11/01
". . . fascinating book . . . deeply useful for both teachers and students of chemistry, at almost any level . . ." - New Scientist, 11/08/01
"This book is like a bar of Cadbury's chocolate: You can't eat just one square. Having said this, I think this is a wonderful book for scientists of all persuasions" - Andrew R. Barron, C & EN
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Preface
Acknowledgements
Introduction
The elements (A-Z)
The periodic table
Appendix: the discovery of the elements in chronological order
Bibliography
Lists of elements and atomic numbers
Index
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The specification in this catalogue, including without limitation price, format, extent, number of illustrations, and month of publication, was as accurate as possible at the time the catalogue was compiled. Occasionally, due to the nature of some contractual restrictions, we are unable to ship a specific product to a particular territory. Jacket images are provisional and liable to change before publication.
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