Bibliographic Information

The crumbs of creation : trace elements in history, medicine, industry, crime and folklore

John Lenihan

A. Hilger, c1988

Available at  / 5 libraries

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Note

Bibliography: p. [146]-148

Includes index

Description and Table of Contents

Description

Of the 90 chemical elements that occur in nature, only a dozen are found in easily measurable amounts in the human body. The rest are trace elements, present at such low concentrations that most of them were, until quite recently, beyond the reach of detection. The Crumbs of Creation reviews the absorbing story of trace elements in medicine, history, industry, crime, and folklore, showing how the study of their properties can help us survive through a better understanding and control of our environment. Written in an easy-to-read, entertaining style, the book consists of interrelated anecdotes grouped together in relevant chapters. Although readers will derive much entertainment from this book, there is an underlying seriousness to the topics.

Table of Contents

  • (partial) Introduction: In which we learn what Mr Gladstone said in 1876 (and what Voltaire said in 1770)
  • Hair and history
  • Was Robert Burns a martyr to drink or to medicine?
  • The inner man: In which we learn how to recognise an essential element and how to discover how much is enough
  • The perilous froth on Canadian beer
  • The moonshiner's colic
  • Death in the pot
  • The chemist in the witness box
  • Sweeping up the crumbs: In which we reflect on the significance of trace elements in illuminating sundry aspects of the creator's strategy.

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