A Well-ordered Thing: Dmitrii Mendeleev And The Shadow Of The Periodic Table - Hardcover

Gordin, Michael D.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 046502775X ISBN 13: 9780465027750

Publisher: Basic Books, 2004

Synopsis

Dmitrii Mendeleev: It's a name we recognize, but only as the disheveled scientist pictured in our high school chemistry textbook, the creator of the periodic table of elements. Until now little has been known about the man, but A Well-Ordered Thing draws a portrait of this chemist in three full dimensions.Historian Michael Gordin also details Mendeleev's complex relationship with the Russian Empire that was his home. From his attack on Spiritualism to his humiliation at the hands of the Petersburg Academy of Sciences, from his near-mythical hot-air balloon trip to his failed voyage to the Arctic, this is the story of an extraordinary man deeply invested in the good of his country. And the ideals that shaped his work in politics and culture were the same ones that led a young chemistry professor to start putting elements in order.Mendeleev was a loyal subject of the Tsar, but he was also a maverick who thought that only an outsider could perfect a modern Russia. A Well-Ordered Thing is a fascinating glimpse into the world of Imperial Russia--and into the life of one of its most notorious minds.

About this title

Review

An academic biography, Michael D. Gordin's A Well-Ordered Thing tells Dmitri Mendeleev's story in dense prose, detailed with Russian history and molecular chemistry. Mendeleev will forever be remembered as the inventor of the periodic table of the elements, which sorts hydrogen, helium, lithium, and so on, according to their weights and properties. Readers unfamiliar with either the periodic table or the politics of Imperial Russia will have a tough go of it. Nevertheless, Gordin's treatment reveals surprising facts about the enigmatic Mendeleev and his social context.

The periodic system was developed in Russia by an individual who was ... trying to bring order to a Russian society that was apparently disintegrating.... In order to understand the building of this part of modern chemistry, one must come to terms with the attempts to create a modern Russia.

Far from a stereotypically isolated scientist surrounded by bubbling beakers and cryptic lore, the "ambitious and energetic" Mendeleev was a very public figure. He involved himself eagerly in the social problems of the day and participated actively in trying to shape a new society. His pursuits included hot-air balloons, art criticism, debunking Spiritualists, and perfecting systems of every kind. When he hit on the idea of periodicity in the elements, he published his table first in a chemistry textbook, later submitting papers to other scientists once his confidence allowed him to make predictions of elements yet to be discovered. Gordin paints Mendeleev as a consummate Imperial who was shocked by the revolution that toppled the Tsar. This complex civil servant and brilliant scientist deserves wider appreciation, and A Well-Ordered Thing provides a rich context for examination of Mendeleev's life. --Therese Littleton

About the Author

Michael D. Gordin is an assistant professor in the history department at Princeton University, where he teaches the history of science and Imperial Russian history. A member of the Harvard Society of Fellows, he lives in Princeton, New Jersey.

Edition details

• Publisher: Basic Books
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 046502775X
• ISBN 13: 9780465027750
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 384