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Superheavy by Kit Chapman

Superheavy

Making and Breaking the Periodic Table

Kit Chapman

Bloomsbury · Print & ebook · March 23, 2021

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2020 AAAS/SUBARU SB&F PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN SCIENCE BOOKS How new elements are discovered, why they matter and where they will take us.

ChemistryHistory of ScienceNuclear Physicsscience
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Who it’s for
Follow the science, rivalries and strange turns behind the periodic table’s newest elements.
Themes
Superheavy element discovery, Nuclear science and its history, The periodic table
Genres
Nuclear Physics, History of Science, Chemistry

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About this book

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2020 AAAS/SUBARU SB&F PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE IN SCIENCE BOOKS How 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.

Continue reading

Welcome to the world of the superheavy elements: a realm where scientists use giant machines and spend years trying to make a single atom of mysterious artefacts that have never existed on Earth. From the first elements past uranium, and their role in the atomic bomb, to the latest discoveries stretching the bounds of our chemical world, Superheavy reveals the hidden stories lurking at the edges of the periodic table. Why did US Air Force fly planes into mushroom clouds? Who won the transfermium wars? How did an earthquake help give Japan its first element? And what happened when Superman almost spilled nuclear secrets? In a globe-trotting adventure that stretches from the United States to Russia, Sweden to Australia, Superheavy is your guide to the amazing science filling in the missing pieces of the periodic table. You'll not only marvel at how nuclear science has changed our lives – you'll wonder where it's going to take us in the future.

At the Table’s Edge

Follow the science, rivalries and strange turns behind the periodic table’s newest elements.

Come here for

  • Nuclear science with history and a touch of the unexpected
  • The high-stakes challenge of making a single atom

Expect

  • A globe-spanning account of discoveries at chemistry’s frontier
  • A clear-eyed look at where nuclear science may lead

Where it sits

Nuclear Physics57%
Chemistry45%
History of Science38%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Inorganic Chemistry
  • History of Science
  • Atomic & Molecular Physics
Authors
Kit Chapman
Publisher
Bloomsbury
Published
March 23, 2021
Format
Print & ebook
Theme
Superheavy element discovery · Nuclear science and its history · The periodic table
Reading lane
Inorganic Chemistry