Stories of the Invisible: A Guided Tour of Molecules

Stories of the Invisible: A Guided Tour of Molecules by Ball, Philip. paperback edition. ISBN: 9780192803177.

If atoms are letters, writes Philip Ball, then molecules are words. And through these words, scientists have uncovered many fascinating stories of the physical world. In Stories of the Invisible, Ball has compiled a cornucopia of tales spun by these intriguing, invisible words. The book takes us on a tour of a world few of us knew existed. The author describes the remarkable molecular structure of spiders silk--a material that is pound for pound much stronger than steel--and shows how the Kevlar fibers in bulletproof vests were invented by imitating the alignment of molecules found in the spiders amazing thread. We also learn about the protein molecules that create movement, without which bacteria would be immobile, cells could not divide, there would be no reproduction and therefore no life. Today we can invent molecules that can cure viral infections, store information, or help hold bridges together. But more importantly, Ball provides a fresh perspective on the future of molecular science, revealing how researchers are promising to reinvent chemistry as the central creative science of the 21st century.