Why Things Break: Understanding the World by the Way It Comes Apart
Language: English
Published by Harmony, 2003
- Hardcover
- Used
Seller: Equipment for Living, Aliquippa, PA, U.S.A.Equipment for Living
AbeBooks seller since October 26, 2025
Condition: Used - Good
US$ 4.86
Quantity: 1 available
Add to basketSeller Inventory # EBV.1400047609.G
- Title
- Why Things Break: Understanding the World by the Way It Comes Apart
- Author
- Eberhart, Mark
- Publisher
- Harmony
- Publication year
- 2003
- Condition
- good
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 1400047609
- ISBN 13
- 9781400047604
• It took more than an iceberg to sink the Titanic.
• The Challenger disaster was predicted.
• Unbreakable glass dinnerware had its origin in railroad lanterns.
• A football team cannot lose momentum.
• Mercury thermometers are prohibited on airplanes for a crucial reason.
• Kryptonite bicycle locks are easily broken.
“Things fall apart” is more than a poetic insight—it is a fundamental property of the physical world. Why Things Break explores the fascinating question of what holds things together (for a while), what breaks them apart, and why the answers have a direct bearing on our everyday lives.
When Mark Eberhart was growing up in the 1960s, he learned that splitting an atom leads to a terrible explosion—which prompted him to worry that when he cut into a stick of butter, he would inadvertently unleash a nuclear cataclysm. Years later, as a chemistry professor, he remembered this childhood fear when he began to ponder the fact that we know more about how to split an atom than we do about how a pane of glass breaks.
In Why Things Break, Eberhart leads us on a remarkable and entertaining exploration of all the cracks, clefts, fissures, and faults examined in the field of materials science and the many astonishing discoveries that have been made about everything from the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger to the crashing of your hard drive. Understanding why things break is crucial to modern life on every level, from personal safety to macroeconomics, but as Eberhart reveals here, it is also an area of cutting-edge science that is as provocative as it is illuminating.
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Equipment for Living
Aliquippa, PA, U.S.A.
AbeBooks seller since October 26, 2025
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| Item | 5 to 14 business days | 2 to 5 business days |
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Equipment for Living is a socially conscious bookstore located in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania. More than just a retail business, we define ourselves as "a business with a conscience" - committed to fostering community development, meaningful employment, and urban revitalization in Western Pennsylvania. OUR MISSION: Equipment for Living operates on the belief that responsible entrepreneurship can be a powerful force for positive change. We provide valuable retail services while creating meaningful work opportunities that serve as sites of training and mentoring. Our Youth Employment Initiative specifically targets local residents aged 16-25, offering employment, skill development, and guidance during the critical transition from youth to adulthood. We measure success not just in profits, but in empowering our employees to pursue their career aspirations and life goals - even when that means moving on to other opportunities. OUR STORY: Founded in 2008 and opening our physical storefront in 2012 after extensive community-led renovations, Equipment for Living has grown from an online book venture into a cornerstone of Aliquippa's revitalization efforts. We've deliberately chosen to establish our business in this former steel town, recognizing that true community poverty isn't just about lacking economic resources - it's about lacking opportunities, connections, education, and hope. OUR INVENTORY: Equipment for Living offers a refreshingly different retail experience from typical chain bookstores. While big-box stores stock only high-demand, profitable bestsellers in predictable arrangements, we curate a wide and constantly evolving selection that reflects the unique character of our community. Our diverse inventory includes books across all genres and eras, audiobooks, CDs, DVDs, VHS tapes, vinyl records, and video games. We embrace the philosophy that "if you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking." While we may not always have the latest bestseller in stock, we guarantee a carefully selected range of high-quality products you won't easily find elsewhere - true equipment for living a rich, thoughtful life.…
Specialty
Various new, used, and antiquarianSeller's business information
eQuip Books LLC
1001 Franklin Ave
Aliquippa, PA U.S.A. 15001