The Alchemy of Us: How Humans and Matter Transformed One Another
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- Create Date：2021-05-02 17:31:04
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Ainissa Ramirez
- ISBN：0262542269
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Summary
In the bestselling tradition of Stuff Matters and The Disappearing Spoon a clever and engaging look at materials， the innovations they made possible， and how these technologies changed us。 Finalist for the 41st Los Angeles Times Book Award in Science and Technology and selected as one of the Best Summer Science Books Of 2020 by Science Friday。
In The Alchemy of Us， scientist and science writer Ainissa Ramirez examines eight inventions--clocks， steel rails， copper communication cables， photographic film， light bulbs， hard disks， scientific labware， and silicon chips--and reveals how they shaped the human experience。 Ramirez tells the stories of the woman who sold time， the inventor who inspired Edison， and the hotheaded undertaker whose invention pointed the way to the computer。 She describes， among other things， how our pursuit of precision in timepieces changed how we sleep; how the railroad helped commercialize Christmas; how the necessary brevity of the telegram influenced Hemingway's writing style; and how a young chemist exposed the use of Polaroid's cameras to create passbooks to track Black citizens in apartheid South Africa。 These fascinating and inspiring stories offer new perspectives on our relationships with technologies。
In The Alchemy of Us， scientist and science writer Ainissa Ramirez examines eight inventions--clocks， steel rails， copper communication cables， photographic film， light bulbs， hard disks， scientific labware， and silicon chips--and reveals how they shaped the human experience。 Ramirez tells the stories of the woman who sold time， the inventor who inspired Edison， and the hotheaded undertaker whose invention pointed the way to the computer。 She describes， among other things， how our pursuit of precision in timepieces changed how we sleep; how the railroad helped commercialize Christmas; how the necessary brevity of the telegram influenced Hemingway's writing style; and how a young chemist exposed the use of Polaroid's cameras to create passbooks to track Black citizens in apartheid South Africa。 These fascinating and inspiring stories offer new perspectives on our relationships with technologies。
Reviews
Faith Reidenbach
，
I read this for a science writers book group--I wouldn't have picked it up on my own--and we all loved it。 Ramirez has taken materials science， the driest of dry disciplines （as I know because I used to edit books in that field） and made it into fascinating stories of people。 Ordinary people， flawed geniuses， people who had their ideas stolen， and--my favorite--a Black female employee at Polaroid who realized her company's cameras were instrumental in supporting apartheid in South Africa and bui I read this for a science writers book group--I wouldn't have picked it up on my own--and we all loved it。 Ramirez has taken materials science， the driest of dry disciplines （as I know because I used to edit books in that field） and made it into fascinating stories of people。 Ordinary people， flawed geniuses， people who had their ideas stolen， and--my favorite--a Black female employee at Polaroid who realized her company's cameras were instrumental in supporting apartheid in South Africa and built a movement that stopped them。Here are the sorts of things I enjoyed hearing about:By the early 20th century， people were starting to need to know precisely what time it was。 Before clocks and pocket watches became readily available， how did they？How did the invention of the telegraph influence American literature？Why did Black schoolchildren appear as black blobs beside their white classmates in 1960s school photos （I remember that well）， and who convinced manufacturers of photographic film to make improvements？Why is light pollution hurting fireflies？When NASA sent greetings from Earth into space， the disc included music。 Was it Bach， or a collection of songs from around the world， and who decided？What role did the white wife of a physicist play in the invention of Pyrex？My only complaint is that I now know way too much about how steel is made。 。。。more
Marta
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Ainissa Ramirez sets out to explore how science transforms materials and in turn， how the use of such scientific discoveries transform us。 She endeavours to marry science with real human stories， especially focusing on contributors who were not white males， and drawing attention to biases stemming from lack of diversity。 She picks eight inventions: clocks， steel rails， copper communication cables， photographic film， light bulbs， hard disks， scientific labware， and silicon chips （I copied this fr Ainissa Ramirez sets out to explore how science transforms materials and in turn， how the use of such scientific discoveries transform us。 She endeavours to marry science with real human stories， especially focusing on contributors who were not white males， and drawing attention to biases stemming from lack of diversity。 She picks eight inventions: clocks， steel rails， copper communication cables， photographic film， light bulbs， hard disks， scientific labware， and silicon chips （I copied this from the blurb）。 For each， she starts with an interesting human story; then describes the history of the invention and the people involved; then she closes each chapter with thoughts on how they affected our lives。 The results are mixed。The best parts are the interesting stories and the description of each invention。 A opening story of the lady who sold time as her business is particularly fun。 The most interesting story of racial bias was the one about Kodak and Polaroid color films being optimized for white skin tones， and washing out dark features - a product of mixing chemicals to match reproductions of a white woman in a benchmark image。 The company was unmoved by pleas of black mothers who saw their children’s features blurred in the yearbook photos。 It took complaints from chocolate and furniture manufacturers to address the issue。 Another interesting and little known story is how the Polaroid Revolutionary Workers Movement has contributed to the anti-apartheid movement by boycotting Polaroid until they pulled out of apartheid South Africa。 I also enjoyed the story of sending a record of humanity’s sounds into space on board of the Voyager， and how involving diverse curators resulted in a rich cover of many music traditions of the Earth。The stories of the inventions are pretty interesting， too， drawing the inventors as humans， making mistakes， persevering， having personal faults， as an attempt to deliver the message that inventors are not superhumans， but real people， whose interest and obsession made a real impact on all of us。 Edison was a genius but a jerk。 The invention of Pyrex was inspired by the cake the wife of one of the researchers made。 Hannibal Goodwin， the inventor of the transparent， flexible roll of celluloid film， was an episcopalian minister， who wanted to show Biblical illustrations for his students in Sunday school， and wanted pictures that survived handling by rumbunctious youngsters。 The problems with the inventions chosen is that they are rather arbitrary。 Ramirez does not follow each imvention from its beginning， but picks a story from the chain of inventions that interests her - thus giving a simplified， often misleading， and decidedly US-centered portrayal。 For example， Goodwin did not invent photography - the first forms of photography was using daguerrotypes， later coated glass plates。 The celluloid was invented by Alexander Parkes and John Wesley Hyatt。 Similarly， Edison did not invent the lightbulb， but improved it。 The stories are more subject to personal preference， but they are often incomplete。 For example， Ramirez vexes long on the diversity of music included in the Voyager’s Golden Record of the sounds of hunanity， but before I Googled it， I had no idea it also included sounds of nature， images， and greetings in 55 languages。 You’d think that would have taken one sentence to mention， but it was not there。 The most questionable parts are the examination of each technology’s impact。 These are utterly arbitrary and seem like special soap boxes of the author。 Often she glosses over the positive impacts with general platitudes that everyone would know （such as laboratory glass is essential for scientific discovery and thus contributed to any random thing that came to her mind at the time）。 Then， she picks some danger this technology poses and utters subjective， poorly researched and completely unscientific oppinions。 She also comes across as generally suspicious of new technologies， especially computers， smart phones and the internet。 In order to make this review shorter， I will mention some of these headscratchers at the end of my review。There are other problems， too。 Ramirez uses imprecise language and undefined terms。 I have the audio so I can’t quote， but I often noticed absolutes that were just not true - an insertion of “most of” would have fixed those。 The editing was wanting: sentences include repetitions and vagueness。 The audio edition does not help: narrator Allyson Johnson reads the text in such robotic monotone， it might as well have been read by a text-to-speech converter。Overall， while the book has interesting tidbits， it is arbitrary， cherry-picking parts of stories， and riddled with unscientific and slightly techno-phobic opinions。 I applaud Ramirez for including diverse stories and viewpoints， but by showing her bias in sampling and opinions， she fails to deliver true insight， and often misleads。 And finally， some of the headscratchers: Electric light causes breast cancer。 Seriously。 Ramirez enumerates ways electric lights are bad for our sleeping patterns， thus causing numerous health issues。 This is well known and fine to talk about， but singling out breast cancer， and citing that “blind women have less breast cancer”， is ridiculous。 Even if this statistic is true， it us a far cry from proving anything to do with electric light， as blind women would have all light blocked out， including natural light。 It probably has something to do with lifestyle differences， or sampling error。 This reminds me how my statistics professor started his first lecture。 He pointed to the river flowing next to the building， and said that there is a statistical correlation between the water level of the river and the number of students failing their exams。 I let you figure this one out。 It is about the same causation as blindness and breast cancer。 The internet makes us less smart。 Hmm。 Just because we can Google information that previously we used to memorize does not make us less smart。 I would argue the opposite。 Without having to memorize facts， we can concentrate on thinking about relationships among them。 That we no longer memorize phone numbers have nothing to do with the internet， it is a function of our phones that remember contacts。 This feature was available in phones even pre-internet。 And what is “smart” anyway？ How can we discuss a concept without defining it？Texting makes us less social。 Young people do not socialize less just because they can text。 Texting is simply another social form with its own rules。 What proof is there that people who text are less social then those who don’t？ I would bet the other case is true - more social teens text more than withdrawn ones。 Many socially awkward people， especially those on the autism spectrum， are more comfortable with texting then in-person interaction， thus opening up social avenue they can explore， instead of avoiding。 And again， how do you define “social”？ I would say texting skills are simply part of it。Using the telegraph led to the differentiation of American and British English。 Ramirez makes the case that the telegraph promoted brevity， which spilled into the style of news reporting and literature。 This is all good， but I don’t see how that led to different spellings and pronounciations。 Telegraph is used both sides of the pond， and if anything， faster communication should have resulted in convergence ol language， not divergence。 I think it has to do with， you know， living on different continents and developing distinct cultures。Polaroid’s leaving of South Africa has led to the end of Apartheid。 The way Ramirez tells the story， the movement that eventually forced Polaroid to withdraw from South America was the thing that started the revolution。 Hmm， I am sure it contributed， inasmuch Western investment withdrew from South America， but I am pretty certain it did not start， nor had significant impact on the process。 It was fought by the people of South Africa。 I doubt she meant to say that the Polaroid Revolutionary Workers Movement was more important than Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress Party， but it comes across this way， I suspect because of her notoriously vague language and the omission of context。 Throughout the story， she does not mention the South African revolutionary efforts， just the Western reactions， thus providing a misleading account。The problem is， that after detecting these errors， how can I trust her other observations？ How many are lopsided， poorly researched or subjective？ As a reader of a book on science， I expect a higher standard of research and writing。 。。。more
Erika Wood
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Loved the story like quality of this book that is filled with fun facts and topics。
Kurt
，
A perspective I haven't seen beforeThe human stories really deepened my understanding of many events in the history of materials that I thought I knew pretty well。 And there are references for everything！ A perspective I haven't seen beforeThe human stories really deepened my understanding of many events in the history of materials that I thought I knew pretty well。 And there are references for everything！ 。。。more
JJ
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DNF @ about 50% （I skipped around a lot）。 The writing is engaging， and the book it self is fine， probably even good， I just found I didn't care at all about the subjects it covered。 DNF @ about 50% （I skipped around a lot）。 The writing is engaging， and the book it self is fine， probably even good， I just found I didn't care at all about the subjects it covered。 。。。more
Nicole
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Impactful glimpses into scientists- both their lives and their inventions- in a way that affects our culture。 Ramirez uses her unique perspective as a woman of color in a field dominated by white men to help me rethink what I thought I knew about scientific history。 Well done and well researched。
John
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Reviewed for Foreword Books INDIES Awards。This book was an interesting glimpse into some important scientific discoveries。 I particularly like the way that the author pulled in the sociological and personal aspects surrounding the discoveries， since science doesn't happen in a vacuum and can have huge impacts on the world around it。 My only critique would actually be the title: there wasn't anything alchemical about this book。 Reviewed for Foreword Books INDIES Awards。This book was an interesting glimpse into some important scientific discoveries。 I particularly like the way that the author pulled in the sociological and personal aspects surrounding the discoveries， since science doesn't happen in a vacuum and can have huge impacts on the world around it。 My only critique would actually be the title: there wasn't anything alchemical about this book。 。。。more
Mattila
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Meh， while I love books on material science and general pop science， history of innovation， and tech; this was just 'another one'。 It was good。 Pros: appreciate the personal take and historical evidence of what happens when only white men design things （everyone else can get left out， and usually not in a good way）。 Not a new point， but especially important given the reach and power of digital tech。 Loved some of the vignettes about the creators and then how society adjusted to the new techCons: Meh， while I love books on material science and general pop science， history of innovation， and tech; this was just 'another one'。 It was good。 Pros: appreciate the personal take and historical evidence of what happens when only white men design things （everyone else can get left out， and usually not in a good way）。 Not a new point， but especially important given the reach and power of digital tech。 Loved some of the vignettes about the creators and then how society adjusted to the new techCons: the book jumped around a bit。 Started as a promise to go deep into why these materials are used/matter and shifted more toward biography and societal impact。 All important lenses， but I didn't find it that engaging。 。。。more
Hanan
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Great！ Fresh perspective and engaging book。
Kate Hanley
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Just fabulous book that combines STEM and history in such a compelling， personal， and relatable way。 Definitely keeping this one around because one of my kids will be reading it in a class， I'm sure， and if they aren't， it will help them write an awesome report at some point。 Just fabulous book that combines STEM and history in such a compelling， personal， and relatable way。 Definitely keeping this one around because one of my kids will be reading it in a class， I'm sure， and if they aren't， it will help them write an awesome report at some point。 。。。more
Leslie
，
This was an interesting read and I appreciate how the author brought the human perspectives and struggles to many different inventions and how she interwove the impact of various inventions。 That said， it wasn’t the book sitting on my bedside table that I clamored to read each night。
Barbara
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This is not a comprehensive science book， but it IS a collection of illuminating and easy-to-read stories about particular inventions and some of their history and implications。 I especially found the photography ones eye-opening: "By the middle of the nineteenth century， Frederick Douglass was the most photographed human being on the planet。" （He was trying to counteract the stereotypes about slaves。） And that early Kodak film was calibrated to white skin tones 。。。 until furniture makers and ch This is not a comprehensive science book， but it IS a collection of illuminating and easy-to-read stories about particular inventions and some of their history and implications。 I especially found the photography ones eye-opening: "By the middle of the nineteenth century， Frederick Douglass was the most photographed human being on the planet。" （He was trying to counteract the stereotypes about slaves。） And that early Kodak film was calibrated to white skin tones 。。。 until furniture makers and chocolate manufacturers （！） demanded better coverage for dark colors in the 1970s。 The author also covers the two individuals who protested -- and changed -- Polaroid's role in producing the passbook photos for apartheid in South Africa。I enjoyed her coverage of the railroads and the telegraph， how both of them helped knit together the U。S。 after the Civil War。 I had no idea that the assassination of Pres。 Garfield was the first news that was followed hour-by-hour through telegraph。 Or that the demand for telegraph access and the charge per word influenced the brevity required of journalists， including Hemingway。 。。。more
Andy
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Beautifully written Ainissa。 Just the sort of book that science communication needs。 The science is easy to read for anyone at all interested， the history thoroughly researched and the stories captivating。 That doesn't make it inarguably accurate: that is the realm of research papers。It does give it a good feel of the quirky characters involved in science and the effort they put into their work。 Our modern world is completely reliant on scientific concepts and the amazing materials that have bee Beautifully written Ainissa。 Just the sort of book that science communication needs。 The science is easy to read for anyone at all interested， the history thoroughly researched and the stories captivating。 That doesn't make it inarguably accurate: that is the realm of research papers。It does give it a good feel of the quirky characters involved in science and the effort they put into their work。 Our modern world is completely reliant on scientific concepts and the amazing materials that have been produced。 Science surpasses alchemy and wooly thinking a million times over。I look forward to further insights from this author maybe aluminium could take centre stage。 We all pronounce aluminum the same way， it is the spelling that has changed。 。。。more
Abby
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I found this book interesting， easy to read， and a great introduction to a lot of really important discussions。 Social justice and science， competition and science， etc。
Brian
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*Audiobook
Santosh Shetty
，
Big takeaway - It illuminates how science is truly a human activity， and to a large extent makes us human。 Creativity and necessity is the common trait and how the spoils don't necessarily go to the deserving。 Big takeaway - It illuminates how science is truly a human activity， and to a large extent makes us human。 Creativity and necessity is the common trait and how the spoils don't necessarily go to the deserving。 。。。more
Marc Thomas
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This looked very interesting， but neither my wife nor I could read it because of the strong odor coming off the pages whenever we opened it。 An ironic flaw in a book by a materials scientist。
Susan
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I love the way the author loosely leads us from an inert material to human frailties to some new technology and change to our lives。
Mysteryfan
，
This book is extremely my thing。 Part history， part technology。 The author takes commonly-used objects and delves into how they were created and some of the unanticipated impacts they had。 That's something we need to continue to think about。 The chapter on photography looked at how Kodak calibrated film development to white skin and contributed to racial stereotypes。 That's still a problem with facial recognition。 Polaroid's instant photos were fun but was used to help enforce apartheid。 Online This book is extremely my thing。 Part history， part technology。 The author takes commonly-used objects and delves into how they were created and some of the unanticipated impacts they had。 That's something we need to continue to think about。 The chapter on photography looked at how Kodak calibrated film development to white skin and contributed to racial stereotypes。 That's still a problem with facial recognition。 Polaroid's instant photos were fun but was used to help enforce apartheid。 Online communications technology is destroying our empathy because we interact with people less。 She also looks at positive impacts of technology。 All in all， I think this book will be in my top 10 for 2021 。。。more
Julie Botnick
，
Probably would’ve stayed a science major instead of switching to history if I read this a decade ago！I love material history and history of science but this book probably did the best job of showing how our inventions in turn shape and change us。 And， she hammers in how we have to actively start un-creating to keep things humans find wonderful like dark skies and fireflies。 I like that she shows all the mistakes and wrong turns and accidents that led to these inventions - it shows that invention Probably would’ve stayed a science major instead of switching to history if I read this a decade ago！I love material history and history of science but this book probably did the best job of showing how our inventions in turn shape and change us。 And， she hammers in how we have to actively start un-creating to keep things humans find wonderful like dark skies and fireflies。 I like that she shows all the mistakes and wrong turns and accidents that led to these inventions - it shows that invention is compound and achievable and not just the work of a couple well known white men。 Reviewers who are looking for individualism， triumphalism， no mention of racism， and technological progress narratives can read literally any other book ever published so not sure why that seems to be a common complaint。。。？？ 。。。more
Rebecca
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Interesting stories on what the author considers pivotal discoveries for technological advancement。
beentsy
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Really interesting and wide ranging。 Gave me so many more subjects and events I want to now read about。
Akash Das
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A good science book to read in your spare time。 This book sheds a good light on the history of some of the greatest inventions and let's you peep into their mechanisms。 A good science book to read in your spare time。 This book sheds a good light on the history of some of the greatest inventions and let's you peep into their mechanisms。 。。。more
Anna
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This book is full of information about clocks， rails， photographic film， light bulbs， lab glassware and more。 Simultaneously it will teach you how each of these inventions changed our world， in the intended and unintended ways。
Scott Hoosier
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Absolutely one of the best things I have read in a very long time。
Aliza
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Cannot recommend this enough。 Hey Dr。 Ramirez， can you please write a children's version - with experiments？ This big kid would love to replicate the inventions you so beautifully described。 Cannot recommend this enough。 Hey Dr。 Ramirez， can you please write a children's version - with experiments？ This big kid would love to replicate the inventions you so beautifully described。 。。。more
Mike Ehlers
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I enjoy stories about inventors and stories about unintended consequences， so the I liked the idea of this book when I heard the author interviewed on a couple of different podcasts。 Interesting how our inventions can transform us。 The illustrations were missing from the ebook I read， so that may be dragging the rating down。
Danny Vaden
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Good
Richard
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One of my favorite reads of the year。 Science。 History。 And great storytelling all the way through。
Erin
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