San Antonio College Library

The chemistry of everyday things and phenomena is examined.

Spiced with quotations from Primo Levi, Flann O'Brien, and Thomas Pynchon, Stories of the invisible takes us on a tour of a world few of us knew existed. The author describes, for instance, the remarkable molecular structure of spider's silk--a material that is pound for pound much stronger the steel--and shows how the Kevlar fibers in bulletproof vests were invented by imitating the alignment of molecules found in the spider's amazing thread. We...

This book provides a fascinating array of examples of chemistry at work, spanning topics from the aurora, to medicine, to sticky notes. The explanations begin with the basics, followed by more detailed analyses that show why it is interesting, fun, and useful to learn the underlying chemical principles. This much-enjoyed book, now fully revised and expanded, illustrates how chemistry governs much of our everyday experience and interaction with the...

"100 chemical myths deals with popular yet largely untrue misconceptions and misunderstandings related to chemistry. It contains lucid and concise explanations that cut through fallacies and urban legends which are universally relevant to a global audience. A wide range of chemical myths are explored in these areas; food, medicines, catastrophes, chemicals, and environmental problems. Connections to popular culture, literature, movies, and cultural...

Describes seventeen chemical compounds in spices, textile fibers, dyes, explosives, medicines, and other substances--including the drugs that account for witches flying on broomsticks--and how they affect civilization.

Chemists and science authors Cathy Cobb and Monty L Fetterolf have teamed up with Jack G. Goldsmith, fellow chemist and reserve police officer, to create another intriguing trek through the science of chemistry, this time using the fascinating field of forensic chemistry as their framework. All new hands-on demonstrations and fictional minute mysteries illustrate chemical concepts as the authors present the science - and the realities - of forensic...

"The book begins with the age of the earth, and concludes with the life cycle of stars. In between, there are atoms old and new, the ozone hole mystery and how it was solved, synthetic fertilisers and explosives, reading the climate record, the extraction of metals, the wetness of water, and how the greenhouse effect on climate really works. A chapter in praise of uncertainty leads on to the fuzziness and sharing of electrons, and from there to molecular...

The science behind alpha-hydroxy acids, chlorine bleach, and other chemicals that people use every day is explored in a fascinating study that examines, through amusing anecdotes and odd facts, if and how they work. What is the secret of shower cleaners? How does the dangerous explosive nitroglycerin ward off heart attacks? And what medicines, usually prescribed for other purposes, are said to produce the ultimate orgasm? In Vanity, Vitality, and...

"Dr. Joe's new collection of commentaries will inspire an appreciation for the science of everyday life, and equip you to spot the muddled thinking, misunderstandings and deceptions in media stories and advertising claims. Does organic food really always equal better food? Are vaccines dangerous? Will the latest health fad make you ill? Do expensive wrinkle creams do the job? What are the best ways to avoid cancer? The answers to such questions often...

"The world is composed of molecules. Some are synthetic while many others are products of nature. Molecules That Amaze Us presents the stories behind many of the most famous and infamous molecules that make up our modern world. Examples include the molecule responsible for the spicy heat in chilies (capsaicin), the world's first synthetic painkiller (aspirin), the pigment responsible for the color of autumn leaves (carotene), the explosive in dynamite...