The Substance of Civilization: Materials and Human History from the Stone Age to the Age of Silicon (English Edition)

Why does glass break and metal bend? A fascinating and fun exploration into why materials do what they do—and how they advanced the world over centuries.
 
How would history have unfolded without glass, paper, steel, cement, or gunpowder? The story of human civilization can be read most deeply in the materials we have found or created, used or abused. They have dictated how we build, eat, communicate, wage war, create art, travel, and worship. Some, such as stone, iron, and bronze, lent their names to the ages. Others, such as gold, silver, and diamond, contributed to the rise and fall of great empires. The impulse to master the properties of our material world—and to invent new substances—has remained unchanged from the dawn of time; it has guided and shaped the course of history. Yet among vast change, there are constants—the same clay used in the pottery of antiquity has its uses in today’s computer chips.
With “diverse and illuminating examples [and] infectious enthusiasm,” engineering professor Stephen Sass shows how substances and civilizations have evolved together. Moving from the days of prehistoric survival to the cutting edge of nanotechnology, this book—perfect for fans of accessible science reads such as Mark Miodownik’s Stuff Matters or Sam Kean’s The Disappearing Spoon—connects the worlds of minerals and molecules to the sweep of human history. It shows what materials will dominate the century ahead, and “convey[s] the richness of the material world and the ingenuity of humankind in making use of it” (Kirkus Reviews).