Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World

Mark Miodownik

HarperCollins, May 27, 2014 - Science - 256 pages

In this New York Times Notable Book, "Mark Miodownik, a materials scientist, explains the history and science behind things such as paper, glass, chocolate, and concrete with an infectious enthusiasm."—Scientific American

Winner of the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books

Why is glass see-through? What makes elastic stretchy? Why does any material look and behave the way it does? These are the sorts of questions that renowned materials scientist and New York Times bestselling author Mark Miodownik constantly asks himself. Studying objects as ordinary as an envelope and as unexpected as concrete cloth, he uncovers the fascinating secrets of materials engineering that hold together our physical world.

In Stuff Matters, Miodownik delivers a fascinating work of popular science, exploring the materials he encounters in a typical morning, from the steel in his razor to the foam in his sneakers. Full of enthralling tales of the miracles of engineering that permeate our lives, his stories of analysis will make you see stuff in a whole new way.

"Stuff Matters is about hidden wonders, the astonishing properties of materials we think boring, banal, and unworthy of attention...It's possible this science and these stories have been told elsewhere, but like the best chocolatiers, Miodownik gets the blend right."—New York Times Book Review

This landmark work of popular science answers the questions you’ve never thought to ask:

• The Science of Everyday Things: Uncover the astonishing properties of materials you think are boring, from the steel in your razor to the graphite in your pencil.
• A History of Ingenuity: Discover the miracles of engineering behind glass, concrete, and even chocolate, and how they shaped our civilization.
• Accessible Materials Science: Join a world-leading materials scientist as he explains why things look and behave the way they do with infectious enthusiasm and brilliant storytelling.
• The Man-Made World: From porcelain teacups to the elastic in your clothes, explore the fascinating secrets that hold our physical world together.

Contents

• 1 Indomitable: 1
• 2 Trusted: 21
• 3 Fundamental: 51
• 4 Delicious: 73
• 5 Marvelous: 91
• 6 Imaginative: 111
• 7 Invisible: 139
• 8 Unbreakable: 159
• 9 Refined: 179
• 10 Immortal: 195
• 11 Synthesis: 215
• Back Matter: 229
• Back Flap: 253
• Back Cover: 254
• Spine: 255

About the author

Mark Miodownik is professor of materials and society at University College London, where he is also director of the Institute of Making. He is the author of Stuff Matters, a New York Times bestseller which won the National Academy of Sciences Communication Award for Books and the Royal Society Winton Prize, and Liquid Rules, a finalist for the Royal Society Insight Investment Science Book Prize. Mark is a frequent guest on podcasts and NPR, hosts regular shows on the BBC, and was chosen by the Times as one of the one hundred most influential scientists in the UK.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World
• Author: Mark Miodownik
• Edition: unabridged
• Publisher: HarperCollins, 2014
• ISBN: 0544237048, 9780544237049
• Length: 256 pages
• Subjects: Education / Reference; History / Modern / General; Science / Applied Sciences; Science / Chemistry / Inorganic; Science / Essays; Science / History; Science / Physics / General; Technology & Engineering / Engineering (General); Technology & Engineering / Industrial Design / General; Technology & Engineering / Materials Science / General