The Disappearing Spoon

And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements

By: Sam Kean

Narrated by: Sean Runnette

Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

“The Disappearing Spoon is my favorite kind of science journalism: it reveals a hidden universe in the form of a thrilling tale.” (BoingBoing)

“Arthur C. Clarke once noted that truly advanced science cannot be distinguished from magic. Kean succeeds in giving us the cold hard facts, both human and chemical, behind the astounding phenomena without sacrificing any of the wonder — a trait vital to any science writer worth his NaCl." (Entertainment Weekly)

Science Magazine reporter Sam Kean reveals the periodic table as it’s never been seen before. Not only is it one of man's crowning scientific achievements, it's also a treasure trove of stories of passion, adventure, betrayal, and obsession. The infectious tales and astounding details in The Disappearing Spoon follow carbon, neon, silicon, and gold as they play out their parts in human history, finance, mythology, war, the arts, poison, and the lives of the (frequently) mad scientists who discovered them.

We learn that Marie Curie used to provoke jealousy in colleagues' wives when she'd invite them into closets to see her glow-in-the-dark experiments. And that Lewis and Clark swallowed mercury capsules across the country; their campsites are still detectable by the poison in the ground. Why did Gandhi hate iodine? Why did the Japanese kill Godzilla with missiles made of cadmium? And why did tellurium lead to the most bizarre gold rush in history? From the Big Bang to the end of time, it's all in The Disappearing Spoon.

©2010 Sam Kean (P)2010 Tantor

Great

Enjoying this book immensely Sam Kean has earned his spot alongside mr. Bryson love it

Loved it

I enjoyed listening to this book. I appreciate the history lessons that accompany the science lessons. I look forward to hearing it again.

What a run

I’m not sure if the author had a thousand points of trivia and found the periodic table a convenient framework to hang them on, or the other way around.
Either way, if you’re interested in otherwise obscure facts about the world around you, it’s a great read.

fabulous non-fiction

excellent historical facts delivered on a compelling narrative structure, there is far more to the Product Table than I realized

outstanding!!!!

I learned so many historical facts and information from this book, plus it was presented in a manner which was easy to comprehend. A must read for any science minded person, or historical buff!

My chemistry professor should have started from the periodic table

I never liked chemistry as much as other sciences or math, but if my chemistry profesor had started by explaining what the periodic table is all about, I would have fallen in love with chemistry. This is what this book accomplished, making me anxious to learn much more about this marvelous table. I hope everybody out there enjoys it as much as I.

A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

I am immediately restarting this book. It manages to be the most educational and fun book I’ve ever read at the same time. The narrator handles the difficult parts well and overall the individual elements stories are so incredible. 10/5. I will for sure listen to this again and maybe even a third time.

Fun time

I am not a science person normally, but the writing style if this book combined with the performance of the reader kept me engaged and interested even through the most technical explanations.

Enjoyable for non scientific types...

This was an entertaining look at the history of the periodic table of elements. Kean does the hard job of making the historic struggle to discover periodic elements funny, fresh and insightful.

There is a real art in making dry material into a funny, digestible narrative, and this is definitely one of those masterpieces. If you like jokes and fun facts about Nobel prize winning scientists and the people surounding their discoveries, this is the book for you.

Unexpected Intimacy

I would have never expected myself to enjoy this book about science, but it is absolutely delightful and I think I am currently listening to it for the third time... in a row.

This book covers the entire periodic table and the associated stories. It describes how some elements were discovered and used for their talents of poisoning the human body, how some people fumbled upon an element and it's uses by mere accident; it covers vastness of time, history, and past and current world affairs. There are names that you may recognize, like Einstein, and there are names that you will not recognize. Many people were award Nobel Prizes for their discoveries and many people died in the wake of them. This book does not only cover the Elements, but also other scientific discoveries, like the usefulness of Sulfa antibiotics. I think you may find this novel surprising enjoyable. It's a novel that is not hard to be captivated by.

You can be clueless to science and still listen to this book thoroughly; although this book can dive slightly into nitty-gritty details about some things, like alpha particles.This book can be enjoyed while performing activities, and it's mostly how I have listened to it. For the most part, you can take your ear bud out for a few seconds while you answer your boss's question and then return to it, feeling fully submerged, like you never missed a beat.

The narrator was excellent! He speaks in such a way that invites you to listen with curiosity. Overall, this was an excellent book to listen to!