Kevin's Watch

I've started reading a book called

Stuff Matters
www.amazon.com/Stuff-Matters-Marvellous ... 0670920541

The book caught my interest after a program on NPR with the author Mark Miodonik. What really struck me about his talk was how we don't really appreciate the 'stuff' aka matter around us.

One thing he mentioned was the significance of the invention of glass. In his opinion, glass was arguably the most important invention made by mankind. According to Miodonik, the discovery of glass was the catalyst for every science from microbiology to astronomy to geology. He maintains that the Asian societies, which were initially far ahead of us in the sciences, were thwarted by their failure to invent glass.

Another thing he mentioned was our depletion of helium. Apparently helium is emitted during radioactive decay deep in the earth. It is harvested by the gas companies (of course). He said when you let the helium out of a balloon the gas raises through the atmosphere and into space. It cannot be recaptured. Interesting concept - element extinction.

Sounds fascinating - I have always been interested in inventions and their inventors.

The Discovery Channel used to have a program called How It's Made - which may even still be on. As Jacqueline Carey said - "All knowledge is worth having".

Wow Lorin - does that mean that we might loose one of our vital elements as a result of kid's balloons and people doing that squeaky voice thing!

re Glass - what always amazes me is the absolute antiquity of the discovery of it. Even though it was a long while before we really got to grips with working with it and sussing out what it could do, it had been around in the form of beads etc since way back in our earliest history.

This sounds like a seriously 'up my street' book!

He's a fellow countrymen of yours.

Here is a link to the NPR discussion
sciencefriday.com/segment/06/06/2014/it-s-a-material-world.html

lorin wrote:I've started reading a book called

Stuff Matters
www.amazon.com/Stuff-Matters-Marvellous ... 0670920541

Sounds right up my street too - though it's going to be hard-pressed to beat my all-time favourite book on scientific matters:-

A Short History Of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson

lorin wrote:Another thing he mentioned was our depletion of helium. Apparently helium is emitted during radioactive decay deep in the earth. It is harvested by the gas companies (of course). He said when you let the helium out of a balloon the gas raises through the atmosphere and into space. It cannot be recaptured. Interesting concept - element extinction.

Now that is fascinating. After a little research, it appears that we source helium here on earth by "cryogenically distilling it out of natural gas" - if one finds pockets of natural gas that lie near a rich source of uranium ore, then the alpha decay from the uranium can apparently mean that up to 7% of the natural gas has over time become helium. Presumably this is a slow-replenishing and therefore effectively finite resource though?

I wonder if hydrogen also sails into the wide blue yonder, or whether it reacts with something before it makes it out into space? Not so much of an issue though, since hydrogen is so readily made.

TheFallen wrote:Sounds right up my street too - though it's going to be hard-pressed to beat my all-time favourite book on scientific matters:-

A Short History Of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson

I LOVE that book. Bryson is so much fun.

peter wrote:re Glass - what always amazes me is the absolute antiquity of the discovery of it.

And I thank humanity for that one thing - the invention of glass. Without it I wouldn't be able to find the right red wine bottle and there wouldn't be any bottles in the first place. Imagine having to pour a $1000 Pétrus out of a stone ware bottle into a chinaware teapot. The horrors!

lorin wrote:

TheFallen wrote:Sounds right up my street too - though it's going to be hard-pressed to beat my all-time favourite book on scientific matters:-

A Short History Of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson

I LOVE that book. Bryson is so much fun.

Bryson is a great read and yes, a good laugh as well. However, as an in depth account of the development of just about every area of scientific discovery 'Asimov's Guide to Science' cannot be bettered. The wealth of detail is tremendous and it is related in as gripping a manner as any of his fiction stories. Great, great stuff!