A Short History of Chemistry (Science Study Series) [Hardcover]

Isaac Asimov (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0313207690 | ISBN-13: 978-0313207693 | Publication Date: October 22, 1979

From the use of metals by prehistoric man to the alchemical experiments of medieval and renaissance man to the complex chemical skills of contemporary man, Asimov traces the development of this building block of our technological world.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 263 pages
• Publisher: Greenwood Press Reprint (October 22, 1979)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0313207690
• ISBN-13: 978-0313207693
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,985,623 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, December 16, 2001

By 

David Barry (Boston, MA (USA)) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Short History of Chemistry (Science Study Series) (Hardcover)

A great accompanyment to a high school chemistry course. High school chemistry is so abstract, that one wonders how chemists ever thought to look at the things they studied to develop the field. Asimov explains what concrete problems and concerns led to the development of each important discovery, situating it in terms of what was understood at the time, and making the logic of the field's development clear. Easy enough for the non-scientist, but with lots of material I never learned in my science education. Asimov was a great popularizer!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars After forty years, still the best short history, July 17, 2004

By 

Charles Ashbacher (Marion, Iowa United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Short History of Chemistry (Paperback)

Even though this book was written forty years ago and there have been many advances in chemistry since then, it remains the best introduction to chemistry available. Isaac Asimov is still the best explainer of science that has ever existed and he was never better than when writing this book. Although Asimov was capable of writing in all areas of science, he was trained as a chemist, so in this case he was writing about the subject that he knew the most about.
The understanding of the elements that led to the modern periodic table did not come easy. There were many false starts and partial truths that were presented, refuted and remodeled. Asimov takes you through all of this historical record, emphasizing that scientific "truth" is an evolutionary process. The "Aha!" moment is a very rare event in science. Most discoveries are the results of months or years of painstaking research and few are definitive. Some of the main advances started as intelligent suppositions that were not verified for decades.
Written at the level of the intelligent high school student, this is the best introduction to the intellectual struggles that forged (literally and figuratively) our current knowledge of chemistry.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A longtime favorite of mine, December 27, 2003

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Short History of Chemistry (Paperback)

I've had my copy of this since high school. Most of my other books are gone, but I still have this one. It's a very excellent overview of the developments in chemistry, from the early days of discovery, from Lavoisier, to Mendleev, to the Atomic Age. A wonderful book that livens up what can be a very dry subject.