The Alchemy of Air

Download or Read eBook The Alchemy of Air PDF written by Thomas Hager and published by Crown. This book was released on 2008-09-09 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle.
The Alchemy of Air
Author :
Publisher : Crown
Total Pages : 338
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780307449993
ISBN-13 : 0307449998
Rating : 4/5 (93 Downloads)

Book Synopsis The Alchemy of Air by : Thomas Hager

Book excerpt: A sweeping history of tragic genius, cutting-edge science, and the Haber-Bosch discovery that changed billions of lives—including your own. At the dawn of the twentieth century, humanity was facing global disaster: Mass starvation was about to become a reality. A call went out to the world’ s scientists to find a solution. This is the story of the two men who found it: brilliant, self-important Fritz Haber and reclusive, alcoholic Carl Bosch. Together they discovered a way to make bread out of air, built city-sized factories, and saved millions of lives. But their epochal triumph came at a price we are still paying. The Haber-Bosch process was also used to make the gunpowder and explosives that killed millions during the two world wars. Both men were vilified during their lives; both, disillusioned and disgraced, died tragically. The Alchemy of Air is the extraordinary, previously untold story of a discovery that changed the way we grow food and the way we make war–and that promises to continue shaping our lives in fundamental and dramatic ways.


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