BOOK REVIEW
By
Randeep
Wadehra
Seven elements that have changed the world by John Browne
Hachette. Pages: xvii+279. Price: Rs. 499/-
So far, we have been hearing of
the basic elements that either constitute life or are providers of various
types of energies, including life force. The number of such elements is either
four or five, depending upon the philosophy text you are consulting. For
example, in Hindu philosophy, there are five elements, viz., earth, water,
fire, air and the void or ether; the Chinese have a different list of elements,
which indicate different types of energy, viz., fire, earth, metal, water and
wood. Similarly, other cultures have their traditional take on elements and
energies. These were formulated over a period of time through observation of
various natural phenomena, tempered with inherent cultural beliefs. However,
sometime during the medieval ages, a more scientific approach to observing and
classifying elements began. Through various experiments and observations,
chemical elements were identified, which led to the formulation of a number of
mixtures and innovations for various uses in industry, economy etc.
However, Browne goes a step
further. He decides to identify those elements that have qualitatively
transformed human life. He has come up with seven. Why seven? His answer is not
exactly scientific, but more tradition-centric, viz., “The number seven has
always held a central place in myth, music and literature. The world was created
in seven days; there are seven notes in the diatonic scale; and, according to
Shakespeare, there are seven ages of man… so I asked myself: which of the seven
chemical elements help us best to understand our world and how it came to be?” He
also explains the process adopted for identification of the elements for this
book, and gives reasons for preferring one to the other.
Browne identifies iron, the
“father of steel”, as intricately associated with the Industrial Revolution,
and the mainstay of today’s energy infrastructure. Carbon is proving to be a
mixed blessing. On the one hand, it is the source of energy in the form of coal
as well as various hydrocarbon products and, on the other hand, a pollutant
that may eventually asphyxiate the planet. Gold, in itself, is an asset that
everybody wants to possess as security against penury. Its lure triggered off
long and risky sea voyages and bloody wars. It has remained, for long, the
mainstay of various state economies. However, the book does not focus much on
gold’s uses in industry, medicine, computers and electronics etc. Silver, among
other things, was vital for photography and hence cinema. Now, it is silicon
that has taken this revolution further by becoming an essential ingredient of
information technology, which has transformed the processes/hardware involved
in collecting, storing and disseminating the myriad forms of information;
silicon has also revolutionized the means of communication. Uranium can be the
source of inexhaustible energy; however, although nuclear energy is considered
clean, it has not yet been trusted completely as safe for humanity. Titanium
has already made it possible for aviation industry to grow exponentially and
become a feasible mode of transport; now it is on the way to doing the same to
space travel. Nevertheless, titanium is also a vital ingredient in the
manufacture of warplanes and various weapons of mass destruction (with or
without nuclear arsenals).
Browne has seamlessly interwoven
science, politics, history, mythology and other disciplines to provide an
informative and riveting anecdotal narrative.
Published in The Financial World dated 15
June, 2013
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