The Art of Chemistry: Myths, medicines and materials by Arthur Greenberg, Wiley-Interscience, £41.95/$59.95, ISBN 0471071803 Reviewed by Peter Budd
HOW do you picture an atom or envisage a chemical reaction? How have chemists, and before them alchemists, carried out their experiments? For centuries, people have sought to convey the ideas and practices of chemistry through art, poetry and prose. And in The Art of Chemistry, Arthur Greenberg leads us on an eclectic and very personal romp through many of them.
In 72 short essays accompanied by nearly 200 illustrations, we follow an erratic but fascinating route through the history of…
