The Disappearing Spoon
And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements
Ranked #1 in Chemistry, Ranked #1 in Inorganic Chemistry — see more rankings.
Why did Gandhi hate iodine (I, 53)? Why did the Japanese kill Godzilla with missiles made of cadmium (Cd, 48)? How did radium (Ra, 88) nearly ruin Marie Curie's reputation? And why did tellurium (Te, 52) lead to the most bizarre gold rush in history?
The periodic table is one of our crowning scientific achievements, but it's also a treasure trove of passion, adventure, betrayal and obsession. The fascinating tales in The Disappearing Spoon follow carbon, neon, silicon, gold and every single element on the table as they play out their parts in human history, finance,... more
The periodic table is one of our crowning scientific achievements, but it's also a treasure trove of passion, adventure, betrayal and obsession. The fascinating tales in The Disappearing Spoon follow carbon, neon, silicon, gold and every single element on the table as they play out their parts in human history, finance,... more
Reviews and Recommendations
We've comprehensively compiled reviews of The Disappearing Spoon from the world's leading experts.
Timothy J. Jorgensen I do like the story of radium. (Source)
Michelle Francl Sam Kean brings the periodic table to life with the stories you didn’t hear in high school chemistry but will wish you did. (Source)
Rankings by Category
The Disappearing Spoon is ranked in the following categories:
- #32 in Earth Science
- #9 in History Of Science
- #17 in Molecular Biology
- #47 in Nerdy
- #5 in Organic Chemistry
- #77 in Philosophy Of Science
- #41 in Popular Science
- #20 in STEM
- #29 in Science
- #39 in Science and Math
- #57 in Scientific
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