Napoleon’s Buttons: How 17 Molecules Changed History by Penny Le Couteur (PDF)

Description

Napoleon’s Buttons is the fascinating account of seventeen groups of molecules that have greatly influenced the course of history. These molecules provided the impetus for early exploration, and made possible the voyages of discovery that ensued. The molecules resulted in grand feats of engineering and spurred advances in medicine and law; they determined what we now eat, drink, and wear. A change as small as the position of an atom can lead to enormous alterations in the properties of a substance-which, in turn, can result in great historical shifts. With lively prose and an eye for colorful and unusual details, Le Couteur and Burreson offer a novel way to understand the shaping of civilization and the workings of our contemporary world.

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: Review “Well-conceived, well-done popular science.”–Booklist “The authors unearth a wealth of anecdotes from all parts of the world and use them effectively to illustrate the technological underpinnings of modern society. Thoughtful, often surprising, smoothly written.”–Kirkus Reviews “Entertaining accounts of how various objects’ chemical properties might have changed history.”–Library Journal “What does the fiery compound C17H19O3N have to do with the discovery of North America? Plenty, according to this remarkable collection of scientific sleuthings. The book’s cases — especially the chapter blaming Napoleon’s disastrous Russian campaign on the eponymous tin fasteners that failed to hold French uniforms together — unfold like CSI meets the History Channel. A splendid example of better reading through chemistry. B+”–Entertainment Weekly “This book is both original and fascinating; I was quickly absorbed by this refreshing mix of science and history; I learned a lot of both and read this book quite quickly for a science book.”–The Literary Flaneur”Well-conceived, well-done popular science.” –Booklist”Most of us never give a thought to … the chemicals that have changed the world. This is brought out beautifully in Napoleon’s Buttons, with its brilliant blending of chemistry and culture. I found it engrossing, and a delight to read.” About the Author PENNY CAMERON LE COUTEUR, PH.D., teaches chemistry at Capilano College in British Columbia, Canada, where she has been a professor for over thirty years. Winner of a Polysar Award for Outstanding Chemistry Teaching in Canadian Colleges, she was formerly the head of Capilano’s chemistry department and was chair of pure and applied sciences. She has written chemistry distance-education courses, coauthored a chemistry textbook, and served as a project adviser in chemistry for universities in eastern Indonesia. She was born in Auckland, New Zealand, and now lives in North Vancouver.JAY BURRESON, PH.D., has worked as an industrial chemist and held a National Institutes of Health special fellowship for research on chemical compounds in marine life. He is also the general manager of a high-tech company.

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐This book does a fabulous job of presenting complex biochemistry and then connecting that science to history. I learned more new history than science but there is plenty to offer in both areas. As a science teacher, I found myself planning a lesson as I read through each chapter. It is definitely a book I will read and re-read again.

⭐Disclaimer #1: I have a degree in biochemistry. I worked in both chemical and biochemical research for ten years including work with several of the compounds and procedures discussed in this book.Disclaimer #2: That was many, many years ago and I’ve forgotten a lot…but not everything.Okay, let’s move on to my review.I like the “Napoleon’s Buttons” part of the title and there are several references to said buttons throughout the book. However, the second part “How 17 molecules Changed History” is misleading. The book discusses a lot more than 17 molecules. In fact, in some chapters it seems to focus on chemically and structurally related molecules while in others it discards the nature of the molecules and focuses on their behavior and usefulness to humans. Still, in either case it does outline their effects on WESTERN history, seldom mentioning anything past the Middle East. Maybe that’s fair, maybe not. It is hard to believe that the Japanese and Chinese did not have chemists or use minerals and herbs for the same purposes as the western world. Also, being somewhat fluent in the history of the Mongol people, I know that the Mongolian empire brought many Chinese inventions to India, Russia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe. Mongolia is not mentioned in the book though. Anyway, I think the focus is on western civilization at the expense of the rest of the world.For me, the history and the historical effects of these groups of molecules is fascinating. I don’t remember learning any of this stuff either in school or in my subsequent work. I remember one time on Bill Mayer’s show, Bill asked Neil deGrass Tyson if he didn’t think the passage of the Affordable Care Act was a major milestone in human history (or something like that). Tyson replied that no, there are so many more important events, the discovery of antibiotics for example that are much more important. The real history makers, the real heroes who improved the human conditions were scientists. How true that is! And yet we hear little about them. Their stories are not discussed in school. In fact, the effects of their discoveries is passed over because they have become such a mundane part of our everyday lives.How readable is this book? I don’t know what the non-scientific, or even non-chemist, would make of this. There are a lot of chemical terms and drawings of complex molecules that may be difficult to understand in spite of the introduction explaining how to read them. The authors do highlight important aspects of the chemicals but what that means to the average reader I have no idea.Do I recommend this book? Yes and no. Don’t think it is going to be a light read of your typical historical events. It is much more difficult to understand chemistry than history. in my opinion. I gave it three stars because of this difficulty. For myself or other people with a chemistry background, particularly organic chemistry, I would rate it as a four. It doesn’t get a five because it rambles.

⭐I loved this book enough to recommend it on my book recommendations email list. I never learned much about chemistry in school, but this book helped me understand it better. It presents various molecules, then presents how those molecules were the most influential molecules in world history. Peppercorns, for example, (with the active ingredient, piperine) drove The Age of Discovery.That same Age of Discovery would have gone much more smoothly with Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C). It’s astonishing how many centuries it took for western sailors to recognize the importance of eating vegetables (the Chinese were growing ginger aboard ships as early as the fifth century). While some captains were catching on by accident, and some crews were still refusing to eat anything other than bread and meat, ships were being staffed with an extra 30–50% to account for the men who would inevitably die of scurvy. It wasn’t until Scottish naval surgeon James Lind conducted an experiment in 1747, that the cure for scurvy was known. But, it was another forty years before the advice was implemented by the British navy – some believe because they actually wanted to keep their sailors weak and under control.Each chapter includes fascinating world history, viewed through the lens of the substances such as salt, oleic acid (olive oil), silk, and glucose, followed by a chemistry lesson. You can see how the various molecules are related to one another. The story behind “the pill” is particularly fascinating. It was a series of discoveries that had nothing to do with contraception, but rather to prevent miscarriages. Several discoveries before that, it was simply to be able to produce estradiol (a female sex hormone) without having to extract it from (literally) four tons of pig ovaries.

⭐I’ve always been a fan of “what-if” storylines and historical non-fiction, so when I was required to read this book for class, I wasn’t entirely disappointed. Burreson and LeCouteur are not only capable scientific authors, but capable authors as well. Though they present technical drawings and scientific jargon, they mitigate these with simple and effectual text. They give the facts of how these molecules changed and accentuate the impact of these molecules by describing the consequences if these molecules hadn’t been discovered or used.For those who are infrequent or sporadic readers, the division of the book made it easy and enjoyable to read for someone who usually only read in-between class periods. I found chapters easily digestible, full of historical and scientific information, and even found myself surprised when I had a fair knowledge of the topic at hand.What I enjoyed most about the book though, was the fact that almost every molecule is commonplace today. There’s nothing so far from popular culture that everyday people won’t understand. Sure, most people may not know all the scientific names of witch herbs, but everyone’s heard of the witch trials. Other sections like “The Pill” show just how relevant some of these molecules really are. Even without scientific designation or more descriptive detail, almost everyone is aware of what “the pill” is even with such an innocuously vague name.All in all, you could do way worse for required reading or scientific literature.

⭐Very interesting book. It was recommended by a friend of mine and it was well worth reading. The chemistry inside the book isn’t too complex and is very clearly explained in the first introductory chapter. If you aren’t at all a science person then you can ignore the chemistry part and not be at a disadvantage. The book itself is more about how chemistry shaped history rather than the history of chemistry and this makes it appeal to a broader audience. It was interesting to read about how spices influenced which countries were colonised, among other things. It is a brilliant book for anyone to read as long as they have at least a mild interest in history and don’t mind broadening their knowledge with some science. If you like science and history then this book is perfect as it quenches your thirst for both. Absolutely wonderful. 5 stars.

⭐This is an absolutely wonderful book to read. I read it during my a-levels and it’s very easy to read and even if you haven’t studied chemistry in years it has helpful diagrams and explains the basic concepts. It links special molecules and the role they played in history such as ascorbic acid and scurvy on boats.

⭐Really interesting book. Bought for my daughter but my wife has read it and really enjoyed it although unlike us she has no chemistry background.

⭐Fascinating about the effect on history of chemistry and chemicals. Decent sized book for the money.

⭐What a remarkable combination of science, history and social effects of just a few chemicals. The science (the makeup of the molecules can get a little complex but just skip if neede and enjoy.

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