Historias de la historia explicadas por la química

Tiberius's unbreakable glass, the robe of the King of the Jews, Saladin's sword, the Terracotta Army, the bacteria of miracles, the Black Prince's fake ruby, the thunderclaps of Algeciras, the shipwrecks of Jutland, the taste of discovery, Saint Anthony's fire, the Salem witch trials, the gases that make you laugh, the battle of the luminous wounds… Chemistry is not knowledge confined to laboratories. It is in the fabrics that established hierarchies, in the medicines that changed life expectancy, in the explosives that transformed warfare, and in the materials that altered the economy and culture. Sometimes it acts silently; other times, spectacularly, but it always leaves its mark on history. In "Stories of History Explained by Chemistry", Alejandro Navarro brings together episodes in which substances, reactions, and discoveries —sought or accidental— changed the course of events. From antiquity to the present day, this book shows how matter has influenced power, science, religion, warfare, and everyday life. It's an invitation to look at the past through the lens of chemistry and discover that many of humanity's greatest transformations began with a reaction, a new material, or an unexpected substance.