Email
Most of us don't even think about all the "stuff" that populates our lives -- until we trip over something. As a teenager, Mark Miodownik started out much like all of us, until a stranger on the tube slashed through five layers of his clothing with a razor blade that was "not much bigger than a postage stamp" -- giving him a huge scar down his back and an unexpected focus to his life.
"Since the stabbing incident, I have spent the vast majority of my life obsessing about materials", writes Miodownik. "A million questions poured out", at least a thousand of which gave rise to his latest book, Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World [Viking (an imprint of Penguin Books), 2013; Guardian Bookshop; Amazon UK; Amazon US/audiobook CD US]. The author, a UCL professor and materials scientist, uses chemistry, history, psychology and good old fashioned storytelling to explore the nature of the materials that compose some of the stuff that occupies most peoples' everyday lives, prompting readers to view the most ordinary objects -- drinking glasses, stainless steel spoons, a bar of chocolate and even pencils -- with a newfound appreciation.
When the book begins, we are greeted by a black-and-white photograph of the author sitting at a small table in his London roof garden, contemplating a book over a cup of tea and bar of chocolate. This photograph serves as Miodownik's launch point and provides a simple but effective structure for the narrative arc of his entire book. From this simple beginning, Miodownik expands his story (and his readers' perspectives) by identifying some of the materials comprising items in this image, using that to begin sharing the stories of man-made "stuff". He devotes a chapter to each material and discusses its chemical structure, the historical reasons it was brought into being, the technology required to make it, why that particular material matters and what it reveals about us.
Miodownik's main thesis is that human civilisation is primarily a product of our vast material wealth and without it, we would be faced with the same struggle for survival that wild animals are daily faced with; that we would be faced with the same struggle that faced our ancestors. He reminds his readers that human civilisation is categorised by the materials used, progressing from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age, from the Iron Age to the Steel Age, with human civilisation now firmly established in the Silicon Age. But the evolution of human progress is far richer, and more subtle and convoluted than these stages suggest.
Take paper, for example: there is no Paper Age, although one could argue that there should be. Light, flexible and yet durable (especially compared to stone, clay or wooden tablets), the invention of paper facilitated the transition from an oral culture, where knowledge was handed down to the next generation in the form of songs, stories and apprenticeships, to a literate culture. Although paper is ubiquitous now, it was rare and expensive throughout much of its long history. After the Chinese invented paper, the Romans followed up with their own important innovation; the codex (book) method of storing information. The codex format replaced the scroll and profoundly affected history: the Bible was one of the first books to be printed in this new format, which expedited the rapid spread of Christianity throughout much of the world.
One could argue that the combined innovations of the Chinese and the Romans created a world filled with universities, libraries and a plethora of publications; a world populated by bibliophiles and bookworms.
Concrete, another Roman breakthrough, is nearly as lasting as books. The Roman Empire relied on concrete to form some of its most enduring structures, such as the dome of the Pantheon, which is more than two thousand years old and still remains the oldest unreinforced concrete structure in the world. Despite its durability, concrete's fragility presented a problem that the Romans were not able not solve, so they used this material only in structures where it would be compressed, such as domes and pillars, rather than stretched, such as bridges and floors. It took a Parisian gardener, seeking affordable, large and strong pots to contain his exotic glasshouse plants to dream up reinforced concrete more than a thousand years later. This innovation paved the way for skyscrapers, bridges and roads.
But perhaps the most astonishing modernisation is self-healing concrete. This material resulted from the fortuitous observation that at least one alkaliphilic bacterial species excretes the mineral calcite -- a constituent of concrete. (Alkaliphilic -- "alkali loving" -- microbes are adapted to extremely alkaline environments, typically growing optimally at a pH around 10.) These remarkable bacteria survive encased in rock for decades, which makes them superbly adapted for incorporation into concrete:
Self-healing concrete has these bacteria embedded inside it along with a form of starch, which acts as food for the bacteria. Under normal circumstances these bacteria remain dormant, encased by the calcium silicate hydrate fibrils. But if a crack forms, the bacteria are released from their bonds, and in the presence of water they wake up and start to look for food. They find the starch that has been added to the concrete, and this allows them to grow and replicate. In the process they excrete the mineral calcite, a form of calcium carbonate. This calcite bonds to the concrete and starts to build up a mineral structure that spans the crack, stopping further growth of the crack and sealing it up. [p. 67-68]
Other innovative forms of concrete include filtercrete, which is comprised of highly porous concrete that allows naturally-occurring bacteria to colonize it and runoff to flow through it. Filtercrete effectively reduces the need for drains whilst providing homes to naturally-occurring bacteria that purify water by detoxifying oils and other contaminants.
Concrete cloth is another important variation, particularly for disaster relief (although sculptors will probably love it, too). This material comes in a roll, and only requires water for it to quickly harden into any shape imaginable.
Overall, this book is educational and entertaining, but the unevenness of the writing is truly disappointing: in places, the prose is repetitive, excessively wordy or overly personal, tripping over that fine line between being charming and being a wee bit too revealing. The chapter about plastic featured a screenplay -- an incredibly awkward way to deal with the topic, in my opinion. And the reason that plastic was singled out for this tedious treatment was perplexing.
The figures embedded in the text consist of either low-resolution black-and-white photographs or hand-drawn images, which were legible but not particularly artistic -- a sharp contrast to the book's brilliant cover art, which is the most attractive nonfiction book cover I've seen in recent years (see video below to learn how this cover was created). Some of the illustrations were unnecessary -- a grocery store receipt, a love letter from his wife -- adding nothing to the author's thesis.
Despite my reservations, this lively and informative book has a lot to offer. The topic is unusual, and the author is clearly most generous with his considerable expertise. Miodownik's scientific curiosity and enthusiasm are infectious and his prose is generally accessible and enlightening. Longlisted for the 2014 Royal Society's Winton Prize for Science Books, this book will delight and educate curious readers, regardless of their science background.
Here's a timelapse video showing how the book's lovely cover art was created:
Reading on a mobile device? Here's the video link.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
Mark Miodownik is an engineer and materials scientist. He is the Professor of Materials and Society at University College London where he teaches and runs a research group. His research areas include self-assembling materials, self-healing materials, and the psychophysical properties of materials. In 2013, Professor Miodownik won the Royal Academy of Engineering Rooke Medal and in 2014, he won the UCL Media Communicator of the Year award. He resides in London with his family.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
Disclaimer: GrrlScientist has no known connection to the book's author. Outside of receiving a free uncorrected digitised proof from the publisher via NetGalley, no compensation was received by either GrrlScientist or the Guardian for this review. All images appear here by courtesy of the publisher or NetGalley.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
When she's not reading books, GrrlScientist can also be found here: Maniraptora. She sometimes lurks on social media: facebook, G+, LinkedIn, Pinterest and of course, she's quite active on twitter: @GrrlScientist
;