I am loving every chapter of this utterly fascinating book.

Three historical notes: Published in 1959, this book suggests the possibility of a connection between lung cancer and smoking; at the time, the connection was only a hypothesis and not proven. It mentions the addition of tetraethyl lead to gasoline to prevent engine knock; it seems that even the possibility that this was an unsafe idea had not yet been introduced. And Asimov discusses the excellent properties of Freon as refrigerant without any reservations.

And Westford library just removed it from its collection. ( )

4/6/22

The basics of organic chemistry are covered by Asimov in this novel. The only thing that bugs me is the lack of IUPAC names. IUPAC isn't even mentioned in this book, which I found quite astonishing. ( )

Asimov explains the basics of organic chemistry ( )

The first, best, and possibly the only book on organic chemistry for YAs and non-science majors. ( )