Not every invention of the chemical sciences is good for the environment, but there are exceptions. Before the career of a William Perkin in the 19th century, purple dye apparently came from sea snails, an animal source, and this method made the creation of color dyes both very expensive, difficult to obtain, and destructive of animal life; now it comes from a chemical dye that is not an animal product at all.

There was pollution from the new chemical dyes, though, although ‘green chemistry’ tries to minimize disruption to the environment from chemicals. And of course, even before I read this book I had to laugh (though not with mirth) at the ad for shoes from “all natural” materials, made from animals, factory farmed, most like, and doomed to be slaughtered as though they’d done something wrong.

It’s not always easy or obvious reconciling chemistry and science-and-technology, with ecology and science-and-nature, but of course, the thing will have to be done for us to be happy in the future.

One hour revisiting valence, bonds, organic compounds, and the periodic table I bought this on impulse from a used book store in Annapolis. Peter Atkins writes very clearly, and I have read his popular account of the elements "The Periodic Kingdom" and when I was a college senior in chemistry, used his "Molecular Quantum Mechanics" as a text. This book was a whetting of my familiar appetite for chemistry. ( )