Customer Reviews: Read 4 more reviews...
 A True Joy To Read January 5, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Natures Building Blocks: An A-Z Guide To The Elements, is an outstanding book, and quite possibly the greatest science book I've ever read. It is filled with countless fascinating facts, such as why an octopus has blue blood and why some people can consume more than twice the lethal dose of Arsenic and live. It really is an excellent reference book for anyone interested in chemistry, biology, nutrition, medicine, or history, and you'll find yourself going back to it time and time again. It does get `slightly' scientific in places such as when it starts to talk about the various isotopes of an element, so some basic knowledge of chemistry is recommended. But it is not overly technical so it's not essential. The sections I enjoyed the most were the `medical elements' which I found extremely interesting. The book is very well structured and easy to follow. This is the kind of book that makes you feel smarter, a true joy to read and I recommend to all. No one could possibly be disappointed.
Excellent June 30, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Its been pretty thoroughly reviewed already but essentially the author takes each of the first 100 elements (those with an atomic number over 100 are lumped together in a chapter of their own) and details such things as its chemical properties, how it acquired its name and a history of its discovery, how the element is produced within stars, its role in human biology, any nutritional role, medicinal uses, military uses, its economic importance, environmental impact as well as any unusual or curious trivia e.g. Antimony pills being sold as re-usable laxatives in the middle ages!
There are also appendices on the periodic table, its development, basic atomic structure and a chronology of the discovery of the elements.
It actually makes very interesting reading and is one of those books that is equally good as a basic work of reference but can also be picked up and dipped into at any time. A welcome addition to my bookshelf!
A fascinating tour de force March 14, 2007
7 out of 10 found this review helpful
This is an outstanding piece of work aimed at the intellectually and scientifically curious that also works as a nice reference book on the elements and the Periodic Table.
After a short introduction filled with some top ten tables (e.g., top ten elements in the earth's crust: "Oxygen 466,000" parts per million, "Silicon 277,000" p.p.m., etc.) Emsley spins out a chapter per element in alphabetical order beginning with Actinium and ending with Zirconium. Each chapter is filled with interesting and specific information about the element in question. In the chapter on carbon, for example--understandably one of the longest in the book (7 pages), since carbon is so important to us and so plentiful--there are sections entitled "COSMIC ELEMENT, HUMAN ELEMENT, FOOD ELEMENT, MEDICAL ELEMENT, ELEMENT OF HISTORY, ELEMENT OF WAR, ECONOMIC ELEMENT, ENVIRONMENTAL ELEMENT, CHEMICAL ELEMENT," and "ELEMENT OF SURPRISE."
The idea is to place each element in terms of its importance in these various categories as well as giving all sorts of information about its history, abundance and uses. In the ELEMENT OF SURPRISE section Emsley usually comes up with something unusual or striking about the use or the history of the element. In the case of iron, Emsley cites a research project that "fertilized" a barren part of the ocean west of the Galapagos Islands with iron sulfate with dramatic results: "Within a week this barren span of ocean bloomed and turned green with plankton, proving that it was simply lack of this metal that was limiting their growth." (p. 211)
Included in the sections are tables showing how much of the element is in the human body (in the blood, in bones and tissues), and how much is in the environment (in the crust, in the soil, in sea water, and the atmosphere). A third table gives the element's chemical symbol, its atomic number, its atomic weight, melting point, boiling point, density and oxides, if any.
There is a final chapter on the history and development of the Periodic Table, which I found interesting. One of Emsley's strengths is his ability to make the material just so fascinating to read. Part of that comes from his obvious love for his subject matter. He is so good he makes me regret that I did not study chemistry when I was young. Just reading this book has opened my eyes to some of the ideas of chemistry and has greatly improved my knowledge of what the elements are like and how they interact with one another to form various molecules as they become familiar and not so familiar substances.
Here are examples of some of the fascinating details that can be found in the book:
"Iridium is the most corrosion-resistant metal known... The standard metre bar, kept in Paris, is made of a platinum-iridium alloy (90% platinum and 10% iridium) but this was superseded as the basic unit of length in 1960 by a line in the atomic spectrum of krypton (see p. 213)."
And on page 213 we find that "The standard was changed in 1983 to one based on the speed of light in a vacuum, a metre being the distance light travelled in 1/299 793 458th of a second, as measured by a light beam from a helium-neon laser."
"Inside the body, iron, as iron(III), is strongly bound by transferrin, a protein found in serum and other secretions... Transferrin binds iron tightly and, because it does so, it acts as a powerful antibiotic simply by denying this essential metal to any invading bacteria which need iron to multiply. As soon as our body registers a bacterial invasion, it produces more transferrin to mop up any free iron in the blood stream and 'hide' it in the liver." (p. 206)
"Neodymium-iron-boron (NIB) magnets are so powerful that those handling them must wear protective glasses--they fly together with such force that they can shatter and send splinters flying in all directions. At times young people have used these industrial magnets to attach ornaments to their cheeks by putting one of the small magnets on the inside of the mouth. However, the magnet and ornament have then proved impossible to pull apart, sometimes necessitating a visit to a hospital for surgical removal." (p. 270)
I have two suggestions for the next edition: (1) provide an index; (2) give us the value of the elements in terms of current (or relative) dollars or Euros. It would be fun to compare. (I realize that in some cases, the value of an element because it is so rare or not used for anything would be just an educated guess, but that's okay.)
Another interesting book by John Emsley is The Thirteenth Element: The Sordid Tale of Murder, Fire, and Phosphorus (2000). See my review.
Is this the best science book ever written? November 2, 2006
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Yes quite possibly!
Brilliantly written and very readable. You can work your way a-z or just browse and turn your thinking of elements and chemistry from; "its a collection of letters and grapes on sticks" to "wow isnt science interesting". Tales of discovery and use of the elements read like any Hardy novel, woe and deception abound!
If youve never thought about 'popular science' and think its an oxymoron. Pick up this book. If you're president of the RSC and think you know everything about chemistry. Pick up this book. You'll learn alot and enjoy it whatever!
A perfect christmas present for everyone with a remote interest in the world around them from about 12+
Pure delight. December 27, 2003
8 out of 9 found this review helpful
This is a wonderful read - absolutely un-put-downable. It achieves what some may think is the impossible - a book about chemistry or physics that is also entertaining. Open it at any page and you will find something to fascinate and delight. It will be an important addition to my reference shelf after I have finished reading it cover-to-cover for the enjoyment.
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