The world in a grain : the story of sand and how it transformed civilization
Beiser, Vince, 1965-2019
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The World in a Grain is the compelling true story of the hugely important and diminishing natural resource that grows more essential every day, and of the people who mine it, sell it, build with it-and sometimes, even kill for it. It's also a provocative examination of the serious human and environmental costs incurred by our dependence on sand, which has received little public attention. Not all sand is created equal: Some of the easiest sand to get to is the least useful. Award-winning journalist Vince Beiser delves deep into this world, taking readers on a journey across the globe, from the United States to remote corners of India, China, and Dubai to explain why sand is so crucial to modern life. Along the way, readers encounter world-changing innovators, island-building entrepreneurs, desert fighters, and murderous sand pirates. The result is an entertaining and eye-opening work, one that is both unexpected and involving, rippling with fascinating detail and filled with surprising characters.
Main title:
Author:
Imprint:
New York : Riverhead Books, 2019.
Collation:
296 pages ; 23 cm.
Notes:
Originally published: 2018."Parts of several chapters of this book first appeared, in different form, in Wired, The New York Times, The Guardian, Pacific Standard, NationalGeographic.com, and Mother Jones" -- t.p. verso.Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents:
Machine generated contents note: 1.The Most Important Solid Substance on Earth -- pt. I How Sand Built the Twentieth Century's Industrialized World -- 2.The Skeleton of Cities -- 3.Paved with Good Intentions -- 4.The Thing That Lets Us See Everything -- pt. II How Sand Is Building the Twenty-First Century's Globalized, Digital World -- 5.High Tech, High Purity -- 6.Fracking Facilitator -- 7.Miami Beach-less -- 8.Man-Made Lands -- 9.Desert War -- 10.Concrete Conquers the World -- 11.Beyond Sand.
ISBN:
9780399576447
Dewey class:
553.622620.191
Language:
English
Added title:
BRN:
362971
More Information:
| Location | Collection | Call number | Status/Desc |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brighton Library | Adult Non Fiction - Science and Technology | 620.191 BEI | Available |