For readers of Sam Kean and Bill Bryson, The Age of Alchemy uncovers a vibrant, interconnected world of forgotten artisans, scholars, and experimenters who, across millennia and continents, transformed mystical alchemy into modern chemistry.“Timely and essential, this is great storytelling.”—Hugh Aldersey-Williams, bestselling author of Periodic Tales3,000 years ago, on the banks of the Tigris in what is now known as Iraq,...

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2020 AAAS/SUBARU SB&F PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN SCIENCE BOOKSHow new elements are discovered, why they matter and where they will take us.Creating an element is no easy feat. It's the equivalent of firing six trillion bullets a second at a needle in a haystack, hoping the bullet and needle somehow fuse together, then catching it in less than a thousandth of a second – after which it's gone forever. Welcome to the world of the superheavy el...

Die wahren Ursprünge der Chemie.Was haben sri-lankische Stahlschmiede, ein giftmordender Papst, deutsche Bergbauarbeiter und ein urinkochender Hamburger Apotheker gemeinsam? Sie alle haben zur Entstehung der Chemie als Wissenschaft beigetragen – einer Geschichte, die bisher kaum erzählt ist. Denn anders als meist dargestellt, wurde die moderne Chemie nicht in der Aufklärung von weißen Männern mit gepuderten Perücken „erfunden“. Sie entwickelte sich über Jahrtausend...

Racing Green is the story of how motorsport science has become smarter and more environmentally friendly, and how these developments on the track are changing the world.Motor racing is one of the world's most watched sports. In the United States alone, NASCAR has over 75 million fans and counting. It's also the most scientifically demanding sport on Earth, requiring a combination of peak physical and mental skill, world-class engineers and...

Bloomsbury presents Racing Green by Kit Chapman, read by Chris Nayak.Racing Green is the story of how advances in motorsport science are changing the world, helping it become smarter and more environmentally friendly.Motor racing is already one of the most scientifically demanding sports: it involves a combination of peak physical and mental skill, world-class mechanical nous and perennial technological innovation. These innovations, first developed for racing, have been in...