Sensitive Matter

by Mitov, Michel; Weiss, Giselle

• ISBN13: 9780674064560
• ISBN10: 0674064569
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-04-10
• Publisher: Harvard Univ Pr

Summary

Life would not exist without sensitive, or soft, matter. All biological structures depend on it, including red blood globules, lung fluid, and membranes. So do industrial emulsions, gels, plastics, liquid crystals, and granular materials. What makes sensitive matter so fascinating is its inherent versatility. Shape-shifting at the slightest provocation, whether a change in composition or environment, it leads a fugitive existence. Physicist Michel Mitov brings drama to molecular gastronomy (as when two irreconcilable materials are mixed to achieve the miracle of mayonnaise) and offers answers to everyday questions, such as how does paint dry on canvas, why does shampoo foam better when you "repeat," and what allows for the controlled release of drugs? Along the way we meet a futurist cook, a scientist with a runaway imagination, and a penniless inventor named Goodyear who added sulfur to latex, quite possibly by accident, and created durable rubber. As Mitov demonstrates, even religious ritual is a lesson in the surprising science of sensitive matter. Thrice yearly, the reliquary of St. Januarius is carried down cobblestone streets from the Cathedral to the Church of St. Clare in Naples. If all goes as hoped-and since 1389 it often has-the dried blood contained in the reliquary's largest vial liquefies on reaching its destination, and Neapolitans are given a reaffirming symbol of renewal.

Table of Contents

Preface: Matter, Are You There?	p. ix
Prologue: Sensitive Matter, Divine Matter?	p. xiii
Introduction: Let Us Praise Sensitivity, a Unifying Virtue	p. 1
Conciliation: The Art of Resolving Conflicts
Peacemaking among Enemies … Easy When a Mediator Is Involved	p. 5
Blend or Separate?
Conciliation
No-Fail Mayonnaise
A Very Discreet Peacemaker
Beyond Mayonnaise
Dissolving Fat in Water: A Question of Organization	p. 12
Don't Mix, Associate!	p. 16
Those Were the Days …
The Psychology of a School of Fish
Molecular Anatomy
Sequestering a School of Fish
Windows Would Do Well to Reflect
Revelation: The Little Additive That Changes Everything
Rubber: A Story Nearly Cut Short	p. 35
Exploring the Amazon
Charles Goodyear: A Human Adventure
Beyond Rubber
Polywater: A Case of Pathological Science
The Firefighter's Jet Stream: Reach for the Sky	p. 48
The Glamorous Affair of Gas and Liquid	p. 51
From Grape Juice to a Champagne Glass: This Way, Please!
The Role of Interfaces
Certified Foamability
Living on the Edge
Beyond Champagne
Down with Foam!	p. 61
Breathing: An Unseen Triumph	p. 65
What Is the Problem?
The History of Alveolar Pressure
Not Too Much, Not Too Little
Pulmonary Surfactant: A Multifunctional Material
Familiarity and Distance: Colloids	p. 70
Being Divided Brings Them Together
The Scribe's Task
Ménage à Trois
Neither Too Little nor Too Much
Additional Instructions
Antithesis
Postscript
Sensitive Cooking	p. 77
Barcelona, Carrer del Carme
Contain
Stabilize
Coat
Thicken
Adaptation: Responding to the Environment
A Cell, Though Not a Prison	p. 93
Two or Three Things We Know about It Cellular Traffic
The Membrane Has No Lack of Potential
Putting Drug Delivery on Controlled Release	p. 100
Meeting Up, but Where and When?
Encapsulation-Decapsulation: Liposomes
Swelling-Deswelling: Excitable Polymers
Best of Luck!
Perpetual Sensitivity: Granular Matter	p. 114
Age-Old Matter, Fresh Topic
Complex Matter, but Why?
The Paradox of the Missing Mass
Key to the Vault of Sensitivity
Liquefaction of the "Blood" of St. Januarius	p. 120
Naples, Saturday, May 3, 2008
Sensitive "Blood": Imitations
Complex Fluids: A Feast of Sensitivities
Transformation by Touch
The "Blood" of St. Januarius: A Yield-Stress Fluid?
Natural versus Supernatural
Premeditation versus Chance
Epilogue	p. 147
Bonus Tracks	p. 151
Notes	p. 159
Bibliography	p. 167
Acknowledgments	p. 175
Credits	p. 177
Index of Sensitive Materials	p. 179
Index of Proper Names	p. 183
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