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Elemental
- How the Periodic Table Can Now Explain (Nearly) Everything
- Narrated by: Roger Davis
- Length: 5 hrs and 12 mins
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Elemental
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Publisher's summary
Selected as one of the best books of 2018 by the Daily Mail.
In 2016, with the addition of four final elements - nihonium, moscovium, tennessine and oganesson - to make a total of 118 elements, the periodic table was finally complete, rendering any pre-existing books on the subject obsolete.
Tim James, the secondary-school science teacher we all wish we'd had, provides an accessible and wonderfully entertaining 'biography of chemistry' that uses stories to explain the positions and patterns of elements in the periodic table. Many popular science titles tend to tell the history of scientific developments, leaving the actual science largely unexplained; James, however, makes use of stories to explain the principles of chemistry within the table, showing its relevance to everyday life.
Filled with humour, this is the perfect audiobook for students wanting to learn chemistry or for parents wanting to help, but it is also for anyone who wants to understand how our world works at a fundamental level. The periodic table, that abstract and seemingly jumbled graphic, holds (nearly) all the answers.
As James puts it, elements are 'the building blocks nature uses for cosmic cookery; the purest substances making up everything from beetroot to bicycles.'
Whether you're studying the periodic table for the first time or are simply interested in the fundamental building blocks of the universe - from the core of the sun to the networks in our brains - Elemental is the perfect guide.
Critic reviews
"Witty, pacy and fascinating...the best book on science I've ever read." (Karl Dixon)
"A hugely entertaining tour of the periodic table and the 118 elements that are the basic building blocks of everything." (Daily Mail)
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- By: Bruce Benamran, Stephanie Delozier Strobel
- Narrated by: Braden Wright
- Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 219
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 196
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 192
As smartphones, supercomputers, supercolliders, and AI propel us into an ever more unfamiliar future, How to Speak Science takes us on a rollicking historical tour of the greatest discoveries and ideas that make today's cutting-edge technologies possible. Wanting everyone to be able to "speak" science, YouTube science guru Bruce Benamran explains - as accessibly and wittily as in his acclaimed videos - the fundamental ideas of the physical world: matter, life, the solar system, light, electromagnetism, thermodynamics, special and general relativity, and much more.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wowzers!
- By Ralph Temblador on 02-15-21
By: Bruce Benamran, and others
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The Science of Rick and Morty
- The Unofficial Guide to Earth's Stupidest Show
- By: Matt Brady
- Narrated by: Joe Hempel
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 103
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 89
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 89
Blending biology, chemistry, and physics basics with accessible - and witty-prose, The Science of Rick and Morty equips you with the scientific foundation to thoroughly understand Rick's experiments from the show, such as how we can use dark matter and energy, just what is intelligence hacking, and whether or not you can really control a cockroach's nervous system with your tongue. Perfect for longtime and new fans of the show, this is the ultimate segue into discovering more about our complicated and fascinating universe.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Some good science in here?
- By Darin Harbert on 02-06-20
By: Matt Brady
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How to Invent Everything
- A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler
- By: Ryan North
- Narrated by: Ryan North
- Length: 12 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 412
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 349
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 348
What would you do if a time machine hurled you thousands of years into the past...and then broke? How would you survive? With this book as your guide, you'll survive - and thrive - in any period in Earth's history. Best-selling author and time-travel enthusiast Ryan North tells you how to invent all the modern conveniences we take for granted - from first principles. This manual contains all the science, engineering, art, philosophy, facts, and figures required for even the most clueless time traveler to build a civilization from the ground up.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Get the book
- By Tim McNerney on 11-26-18
By: Ryan North
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What Einstein Didn't Know
- Scientific Answers to Everyday Questions
- By: Robert L. Wolke
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 205
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 182
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Story4 out of 5 stars 181
How does soap know what's dirt? How do magnets work? Why do ice cubes crackle in your glass? And how can you keep them quiet? These are questions that torment us all. Now Robert L. Wolke, professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh, provides definitive - and amazingly simple - explanations for the mysteries of everyday life.
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3 out of 5 stars
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A funny thing happened on the way to a great book
- By Joseph on 10-01-12
By: Robert L. Wolke
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Life’s Ratchet
- How Molecular Machines Extract Order from Chaos
- By: Peter M. Hoffman
- Narrated by: Paul Hodgson
- Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 442
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 383
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 378
The cells in our bodies consist of molecules, made up of the same carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen atoms found in air and rocks. But molecules, such as water and sugar, are not alive. So how do our cells - assemblies of otherwise "dead" molecules - come to life, and together constitute a living being? In Life’s Ratchet, physicist Peter M. Hoffmann locates the answer to this age-old question at the nanoscale.
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5 out of 5 stars
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For biologists to learn single molecule biophysics
- By A Synthetic Biologist on 09-04-14
By: Peter M. Hoffman
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The Amazing Story of Quantum Mechanics
- A Math-Free Exploration of the Science That Made Our World
- By: James Kakalios
- Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 98
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 64
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Story4 out of 5 stars 65
In The Amazing Story of Quantum Mechanics, James Kakalios uses examples from comics and magazines to explain how breakthroughs in quantum mechanics led to such technologies as the World Wide Web, pocket-sized computers, mobile phones, and MRI machines.....
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2 out of 5 stars
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The exhibits are missing from Audible
- By David on 12-13-10
By: James Kakalios
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Sun in a Bottle
- The Strange History of Fusion and the Science of Wishful Thinking
- By: Charles Seife
- Narrated by: Bill Weideman
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 133
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 72
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Story4 out of 5 stars 73
For the past 50 years, governments and research teams have tried to bottle the sun with lasers, magnets, sound waves, and particle beams, struggling to harness the power of fusion. Again and again, they have failed, disgracing generations of scientists. Throughout this fascinating journey, Charles Seife introduces us to the daring geniuses, villains, and victims of fusion science.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Focused on the Lone Wolves
- By Robert Goldston on 11-14-08
By: Charles Seife
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Life on the Edge
- The Coming of Age of Quantum Biology
- By: Johnjoe McFadden, Jim Al-Khalili
- Narrated by: Pete Cross
- Length: 12 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 393
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 340
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 338
Life is the most extraordinary phenomenon in the known universe; but how did it come to be? Even in an age of cloning and artificial biology, the remarkable truth remains: Nobody has ever made anything living entirely out of dead material. Life remains the only way to make life. Are we still missing a vital ingredient in its creation?
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3 out of 5 stars
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More woo than new
- By Gary on 09-09-15
By: Johnjoe McFadden, and others
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Exoplanets
- Diamond Worlds, Super Earths, Pulsar Planets, and the New Search for Life Beyond Our Solar System
- By: Michael Summers
- Narrated by: Jon Bennett
- Length: 5 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 174
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 144
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 142
Since its 2009 launch, the Kepler satellite has discovered more than 2,000 exoplanets, or planets outside our solar system. More exoplanets are being discovered all the time, remarkable in their variety. Astronomer Michael Summers and physicist James Trefil explore these remarkable recent discoveries: planets revolving around pulsars, planets made of diamond, planets that are mostly water, and numerous rogue planets wandering through the emptiness of space.
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5 out of 5 stars
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FINALLY, an Attention-Grabbing Planet Book!
- By aaron on 05-11-17
By: Michael Summers
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Ignition!
- An Informal History of Liquid Rocket Propellants
- By: John Drury Clark, Isaac Asimov - foreward
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 9 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 652
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 541
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 538
Ignition! is the story of the search for a rocket propellant which could be trusted to take man into space. This search was a hazardous enterprise carried out by rival labs who worked against the known laws of nature, with no guarantee of success or safety. John Drury Clark writes with irreverent and eyewitness immediacy about the development of the explosive fuels strong enough to negate the relentless restraints of gravity. The resulting volume is as much a memoir as a work of history, sharing a behind-the-scenes view of an enterprise that eventually took men to the moon.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Science man lists names of chemicals for 9 hours
- By Adrian on 05-06-19
By: John Drury Clark, and others
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When the Earth Had Two Moons
- Cannibal Planets, Icy Giants, Dirty Comets, Dreadful Orbits, and the Origins of the Night Sky
- By: Erik Asphaug
- Narrated by: Adam Verner
- Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 60
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 47
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Story4 out of 5 stars 47
In 1959, the Soviet probe Luna 3 took the first photos of the far side of the Moon. Even in their poor resolution, the images stunned scientists: The far side is an enormous mountainous expanse, not the vast lava plains seen from Earth. Subsequent missions have confirmed this in much greater detail. How could this be, and what might it tell us about our own place in the universe? As it turns out, quite a lot. When the Earth Had Two Moons is an astonishing exploration of planet formation and the origins of life by one of the world’s most innovative planetary geologists.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Poorly written, poorly narrated
- By RickyF on 05-11-23
By: Erik Asphaug
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The Universe in the Rearview Mirror
- How Hidden Symmetries Shape Reality
- By: Dave Goldberg
- Narrated by: Chris Sorensen
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 65
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 58
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Story4 out of 5 stars 57
A physicist speeds across space, time, and everything in between showing that our elegant universe from the Higgs boson to antimatter to the most massive group of galaxies is shaped by hidden symmetries that have driven all our recent discoveries about the universe and all the ones to come. Why is the sky dark at night? Is it possible to build a shrink-ray gun? If there is antimatter, can there be antipeople? Why are past, present, and future our only options? Are time and space like a butterfly's wings? No one but Dave Goldberg, the coolest nerd physicist on the planet, could give a hyper-drive tour of the universe like this one.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Good, but for whom?
- By Michael on 08-31-13
By: Dave Goldberg
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Forces of Nature
- By: Professor Brian Cox, Andrew Cohen
- Narrated by: Samuel West
- Length: 7 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 487
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 436
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 430
Professor Brian Cox uncovers some of the most extraordinary natural events on Earth and in the universe and beyond. From the immensity of the universe and the roundness of Earth to the form of every single snowflake, the forces of nature shape everything we see. Pushed to extremes, the results are astonishing. In seeking to understand the everyday world, the colours, structure, behaviour and history of our home, we develop the knowledge and techniques necessary to step beyond the everyday.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Complicated in its simplicity
- By Philomath on 06-13-17
By: Professor Brian Cox, and others
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Origins
- The Scientific Story of Creation
- By: Jim Baggott
- Narrated by: Neil Scott-Barbour
- Length: 16 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 70
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 59
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 56
What is the nature of the material world? How does it work? What is the universe and how was it formed? What is life? Where do we come from and how did we evolve? How and why do we think? What does it mean to be human? How do we know? There are many different versions of our creation story. This book tells the version according to modern science. It is a unique account, starting at the Big Bang and travelling right up to the emergence of humans as conscious intelligent beings, 13.8 billion years later.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Interesting book, but WOW, the narrator ...
- By UH on 01-10-17
By: Jim Baggott
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The Unknown Universe
- A New Exploration of Time, Space and Cosmology
- By: Stuart Clark
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,128
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,018
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,020
On March 21, 2013, the European Space Agency released a map of the afterglow of the big bang. Taking in 440 sextillion kilometers of space and 13.8 billion years of time, it is physically impossible to make a better map: We will never see the early universe in more detail. On the one hand, such a view is the apotheosis of modern cosmology; on the other, it threatens to undermine almost everything we hold cosmologically sacrosanct.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Everything, Absolutely Everything!
- By Gillian on 03-09-17
By: Stuart Clark
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A Brief Welcome to the Universe
- A Pocket-Sized Tour
- By: Neil deGrasse Tyson, Michael A. Strauss, J. Richard Gott
- Narrated by: Neil Hellegers
- Length: 4 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 65
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 50
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 50
A Brief Welcome to the Universe offers a breathtaking tour of the cosmos, from planets, stars, and galaxies to black holes and time loops. Best-selling authors and acclaimed astrophysicists Neil deGrasse Tyson, Michael A. Strauss, and J. Richard Gott take listeners on an unforgettable journey of exploration to reveal how our universe actually works. Propelling you from our home solar system to the outermost frontiers of space, this book builds your cosmic insight and perspective through a marvelously entertaining narrative.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great Listen
- By Mark Bauer on 06-19-23
By: Neil deGrasse Tyson, and others
What listeners say about Elemental
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- SW Oregon
- 08-07-22
Entertaining for any laymen
Chucked full of history and chemistry. Lots of research went into this book. I will be coming back to it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sarah
- 06-06-21
Fascinating, entertaining, illuminating, relevant!
If I had only had access to this book before going into chemistry lessons in school! This book is one of my favorite listens of all time. Packed with scientific facts with relevant history and real world stories to go with them, I’d recommend this book to anyone who’s ever been the slightest bit curious about the world around us for a most exciting and entertaining story about the basic building blocks of our world. I loved it through and through!!!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Caroline
- 10-15-22
Fun Chemistry
I agree with other reviews that this is an entertaining overview of the periodic table and interesting ancillary topics from physics, chemistry and a bit of biology. Narrator’s voice is pleasingly upbeat.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Trevor lipsey
- 06-03-21
hilarious, it kept me wanting more!
the humor was great, and the reader was amazing at capturing the books stories! loved it
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Dennis M Danzik
- 10-26-22
Highly Recommend
Great research. Great teaching. You cannot lose reading this information packed volume of knowledge!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- jose
- 02-26-22
Great help
Great book for understanding the periodic table history. Makes wanting to learn it more enjoyable
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sam
- 05-12-22
Chemistry Can not be More Simpler
This is all what a chemistry student needs for development of a solid base. Tim's way of explanations span smoothly from elementary to graduate level. From solubility to entropic disorders, states from gaseous to plasma, how coke is made of, and a wide range of real life examples/facts and accidents.....the title simply can not to be missed.
Wish Tim's series continue beyond Astronomical and Fundamental; and more to append on recent Semiconductor/OLED/WiFi Communication technologies to Modern Computers with exotic terms.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- chris
- 12-02-20
A story about some interesting chemicals
A book about interesting discoveries and elemental importance. No chemistry background is needed to enjoy.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- james williamson
- 06-26-23
Very entertaining
I found the information quite interesting. The narrator did a fine job too. I think if I had read this prior to starting my high school chemistry class I would have gotten a lot more out of it.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Tatras
- 11-06-22
Funny and understandable.
Seasoned with lots of interesting trivia. The narrator has a lot of character and reminds me Moss from IT crowd - someone will like it someone not, I did.
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1 person found this helpful