Audiobook9 hours
Antimony, Gold, and Jupiter's Wolf: How the elements were named
Written by Peter Wothers
Narrated by Julian Elfer
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
5/5
()
About this audiobook
The iconic Periodic Table of the Elements is now in its most satisfyingly elegant form. This is because all the 'gaps' corresponding to missing elements in the seventh row, or period, have recently been filled and the elements named. But where do these names come from? For some, usually the most recent, the origins are quite obvious, but in others-even well-known elements such as oxygen or nitrogen-the roots are less clear.
Here, Peter Wothers explores the fascinating and often surprising stories behind how the chemical elements received their names. Delving back in time to explore the history and gradual development of chemistry, he sifts through medieval manuscripts for clues to the stories surrounding the discovery of the elements, showing how they were first encountered or created, and how they were used in everyday lives. While some of the origins of the names were controversial (and indeed incorrect-some saying, for instance, that oxygen might be literally taken to mean 'the son of a vinegar merchant'), they have nonetheless influenced language used around the world to this very day. Throughout, Wothers delights in dusting off the original sources, and bringing to light the astonishing, the unusual, and the downright weird origins behind the names of the elements so familiar to us today.
Here, Peter Wothers explores the fascinating and often surprising stories behind how the chemical elements received their names. Delving back in time to explore the history and gradual development of chemistry, he sifts through medieval manuscripts for clues to the stories surrounding the discovery of the elements, showing how they were first encountered or created, and how they were used in everyday lives. While some of the origins of the names were controversial (and indeed incorrect-some saying, for instance, that oxygen might be literally taken to mean 'the son of a vinegar merchant'), they have nonetheless influenced language used around the world to this very day. Throughout, Wothers delights in dusting off the original sources, and bringing to light the astonishing, the unusual, and the downright weird origins behind the names of the elements so familiar to us today.
Related to Antimony, Gold, and Jupiter's Wolf
Related audiobooks
The Elements We Live By: How Iron Helps Us Breathe, Potassium Lets Us See, and Other Surprising Superpowers of the Periodic Table Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Just Six Numbers: The Deep Forces That Shape the Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Periodic Table: A Very Short Introduction Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Calculating the Cosmos: How Mathematics Unveils the Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Impact: How Rocks from Space Led to Life, Culture, and Donkey Kong Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Quantum Numbers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Romance of Modern Chemistry Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Story of Earth: The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Living Planet Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ripples in Spacetime: Einstein, Gravitational Waves, and the Future of Astronomy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Physics for Poets Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lightness Being: Mass, Ether, and the Unification of Forces Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How It Began: A Time-Traveler's Guide to the Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Horizons of Cosmology: Exploring Worlds Seen and Unseen Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Astrobiology: A Very Short Introduction Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Life on a Young Planet: The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs: The Astounding Interconnectedness of the Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Forces of Nature Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Astrophysics Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChandra's Cosmos: Dark Matter, Black Holes, and Other Wonders Revealed by NASA's Premier X-Ray Observatory Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Dark Matter & Dark Energy: The Hidden 95% of the Universe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Little Book of Exoplanets Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It's Elemental: The Hidden Chemistry in Everything Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Liquid Rules: The Delightful & Dangerous Substances that Flow Through Our Lives Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Oxygen: The molecule that made the world Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Block by Block: The Historical and Theoretical Foundations of Thermodynamics Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ten Days in Physics that Shook the World: How Physicists Transformed Everyday Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Assembling Life: How Can Life Begin on Earth and Other Habitable Planets? Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSpark: The Life of Electricity and the Electricity of Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chemistry for Breakfast: The Amazing Science of Everyday Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Full Spectrum: How the Science of Color Made Us Modern Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Chemistry For You
Exploring Creation With Chemistry, 3rd Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPeriodic Tales: A Cultural History of the Elements, from Arsenic to Zinc Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Napoleon's Buttons: 17 Molecules That Changed History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Symphony in C: Carbon and the Evolution of (Almost) Everything Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Slime: How Algae Created Us, Plague Us, and Just Might Save Us Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It's Elemental: The Hidden Chemistry in Everything Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Introduction to Chemistry Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Half-Life of Facts: Why Everything We Know Has an Expiration Date Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Meltdown: Nuclear disaster and the human cost of going critical Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Nature of Drugs Vol. 1: History, Pharmacology, and Social Impact Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summary of Dr. Sue Johnson's Love Sense Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsElixir: A Parisian Perfume House and the Quest for the Secret of Life Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTransformer: The Deep Chemistry of Life and Death Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Book Of Early Whisperings Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIs That a Fact?: Frauds, Quacks, and the Real Science of Everyday Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Block by Block: The Historical and Theoretical Foundations of Thermodynamics Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chasing Space: An Astronaut's Story of Grit, Grace, and Second Chances Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bitter Pills: The Global War on Counterfeit Drugs Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Science Goes Viral: Captivating Accounts of Science in Everyday Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Monkeys, Myths, and Molecules: Separating Fact from Fiction, and the Science of Everyday Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chemistry for Breakfast: The Amazing Science of Everyday Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Periodic Table: A Very Short Introduction Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Oxygen: The molecule that made the world Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Studying the chemistry of cannabis: cannabinoid extraction methods Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Alchemy of Us: How Humans and Matter Transformed One Another Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Brewmaster's Art Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Long Hard Road: The Lithium-Ion Battery and the Electric Car Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Quantum Chemistry Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Antimony, Gold, and Jupiter's Wolf
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
5/5
3 ratings0 reviews