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The lost elements : the Periodic Table's shadow side / Marco Fontani, Mariagrazia Costa, and Mary Virginia Orna.
Author
Fontani, Marco, 1969-
[Browse]
Format
Book
Language
English
Published/Created
Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, [2015]
©2015
Description
xxxvii, 531 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm
Availability
Available Online
Ebook Central Perpetual, DDA and Subscription Titles
Copies in the Library
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Call Number
Status
Location Service
Notes
Firestone Library - Stacks
QD467 .F66 2015
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Details
Subject(s)
Chemical elements
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Chemical elements
—
History
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Periodic law
—
History
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Chemistry
—
Nomenclature
—
History
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Chemistry
—
Humor
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Related name
Costa, Mariagrazia
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Orna, Mary Virginia
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Library of Congress genre(s)
Humor
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Getty AAT genre
humor
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Summary note
The Periodic Table of Elements hasn't always looked like it does now, a well-organized chart arranged by atomic number. In the mid-nineteenth century, chemists were of the belief that the elements should be sorted by atomic weight. However, the weights of many elements were calculated incorrectly, and over time it became clear that not only did the elements need rearranging, but that the periodic table contained many gaps and omissions: there were elements yet to be discovered, and the allure of finding one had scientists rushing to fill in the blanks. Supposed "discoveries" flooded laboratories, and the debate over what did and did not belong on the periodic table reached a fever pitch. With the discovery of radioactivity, the discourse only intensified. Throughout its formation, the Periodic Table of Elements has seen false entries, good-faith errors, retractions, and dead ends. In fact, there have been more falsely proclaimed elemental discoveries throughout history than there are elements on the table as we know it today. The Lost Elements: The Periodic Table's Shadow Side collects the most notable of these instances, stretching from the nineteenth century to the present. The book tells the story of how scientists have come to understand elements, by discussing the failed theories and false discoveries that shaped the path of scientific progress. We learn of early chemists' stubborn refusal to disregard alchemy as a legitimate practice, and of one German's supposed discovery of an elemental metal that breathed. As elements began to be created artificially in the twentieth century, we watch the discovery climate shift to favor the physicists, rather than the chemists. Along the way, Fontani, Costa, and Orna introduce us to the key figures in the development of today's periodic table, including Lavoisier and Mendeleev. Featuring a preface from Nobel Laureate Roald Hoffmann, The Lost Elements is an expansive history of the wrong side of chemical discovery - and reveals how these errors and gaffes have helped shape the table as much as any other form of scientific progress.--From dust jacket.
Bibliographic references
Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
Contents
Before 1789: early errors and early elements
1789-1869: from Lavoisier to Mendeleev: the first errors at the dawn of the concept of the chemical element
1869-1913: from the periodic table to Moseley's law: rips and tears in Mendeleev's net
1914-1939: from nuclear classification to the first accelerators: chemists' paradise lost... (and physicists' paradise regained)
1939-present: beyond uranium, to the stars
Modern alchemy: the dream to transmute the elements has always been with us.
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Other title(s)
Periodic table's shadow side
ISBN
9780199383344 ((alk. paper))
0199383340 ((alk. paper))
LCCN
2014009191
OCLC
873238266
Other standard number
40024181734
Statement on language in description
Princeton University Library aims to describe library materials in a manner that is respectful to the individuals and communities who create, use, and are represented in the collections we manage.
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The lost elements [electronic resource] : the Periodic Table's shadow side / Marco Fontani, Mariagrazia Costa, and Mary Virginia Orna.
id
99125350197806421
The lost elements : the Periodic Table's shadow side / Marco Fontani, Mariagrazia Costa, and Mary Virginia Orna.
id
SCSB-9104909