Superheavy: Making and Breaking the Periodic Table

by Kit Chapman

An in-depth look at how elements are discovered, why they matter and where they will take us.

The science of element discovery is a truly fascinating field, and is constantly rewriting the laws of chemistry and physics as we know them. Superheavy is the first book to take an in-depth look at how synthetic elements are discovered, why they matter and where they will take us. From the Cold War nuclear race to the present day, scientists have stretched the periodic table to 118 elements. They have broken the rules of the periodic table, rewriting the science we're taught in school, and have the potential to revolutionize our lives.

Kit Chapman takes us back to the very beginning, with the creation of the atomic bomb. He tells the story of the major players, such as Ernest Lawrence who revolutionized the field of particle physics with the creation of the cyclotron; Yuri Oganessian, the "guerilla scientist" who opened up a new era of discovery in the field and is the only living scientists to have an element named after him; and Victor Ninov, the disgraced physicist who almost pulled off the greatest fraud in nuclear science. This book will bring us in a full circle back to Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where the first atomic bomb was developed, and that has more recently been an essential player in creating the new superheavy element 117.

Throughout, Superheavy explains the complex science of element discovery in clear and easy-to-follow terms. It walks through the theories of atomic structure, discusses the equipment used and explains the purpose of the research. By the end of the book readers will not only marvel at how far we've come, they will be in awe of where we are going and what this could mean for the worlds of physics and chemistry as we know them today.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, History, Chemistry, Physics, History Of Science, Academia

304 pages, Hardcover

First published August 27, 2019

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Dr Kit Chapman is an award-winning science journalist. Formerly an editor for Chemistry World, Kit’s byline can be seen in Nature, New Scientist, The Daily Telegraph, Chemist+Druggist and BBC Science Focus among others.

Kit appears regularly on radio, TV and podcasts, and has given talks to thousands of students around the world on science, writing and history.

Born in the UK, Kit holds a masters degree in pharmacy from the University of Bradford and a PhD in the history and philosophy of science from the University of Sunderland.

Reviews

[Anna Ahveninen · Rating 5 out of 5]

H E C K.

Superheavy easily dethrones Disappearing Spoon as my favourite popsci book. Must read for lovers of the periodic table, the elements and science history, and not just for the facts. I need to slowly read this again in the near future so I can figure out how Chapman can make what could have been a dry topic (I wrote about elements 113-118 recently and found it very difficult) so compelling. I swear there was something in every chapter that made me go "oh holy wow" or laugh out loud.

My life's mission is now to get this my copy signed...

[Joanna S · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is possibly the best pop-sci book I have ever read. It had enough science to keep us in the field entertained and nodding along, clear (not-too-technical) explanations, tons of fun anecdotes and random historical facts, and amusing footnotes. The first third of the book is all about the transuranic elements, Manhattan project, etc. After that, we get into the realm of superheavy elements. It is hard to write an exciting story about 8 atoms (118), but Chapman manages it.

I just got my copy signed by Kit (he even drew a little unicorn!) and enjoyed a group dinner with him (yes, I'm bragging!) His voice and story-telling is the same in person, and he is just as funny and interesting in person and on the page.

[Kara Babcock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Science continues to be a discipline which I love to learn about yet have no interest in doing, if that makes any sense. I studied mathematics in undergrad because I love that you can do it with a pencil and paper (or even, sometimes, in your head). Science, especially experimental parts of science, in contrast feels so … well … messy. And nothing is messier than smashing radioactive atoms together in the hopes of discovering new atomic elements! So Superheavy: Making and Breaking the Periodic Table felt like a comfortable way to experience all that drama from my armchair, or couch, or bed, as necessary.

Kit Chapman delivers a thoroughly researched and fun look at the history and current state of superheavy nuclear physics. Basically, most of the first ninety-two elements on the periodic table occur in nature in some way, shape, form, and duration (though some only so briefly or remotely that we actually first encountered them through lab synthesis). As atomic physics heated up (pun intended) in the first decades of the twentieth century, work on the atomic bomb led physicists to synthesize neptunium and plutonium, and from there, the race was on to see which labs around the world might discover more and more elements. These elements are “superheavy” because they have so many protons and neutrons in their nuclei—making most of them remarkably unstable and short-lived by human measures of time. As the twentieth century elapsed, four labs in four different countries have at various times competed and collaborated to synthesize and claim the discovery of new elements. As of this review, we have discovered up to element 118, now named oganesson, after one of the primary drivers of this epic quest.

And epic indeed it is. Though Chapman at times frames the search for superheavies as a race between nations or labs, he is also careful to delimit this endeavour as a collaborative, cooperative one. Indeed, one of my favourite things about Superheavy is the way it truly puts paid to the “Great Man” theory of science. Of course individual titans, such as Al Ghiorso, Glenn Seaborg, Darleanne Hoffman, Yuri Oganessian, etc., loom large over this history—how could they not? Yet it is exactly the fact that there is such an extensive list—and indeed, I had to curate those names from a much longer “where are they now” list in the book’s epilogue—that proves my point. Even those people by themselves could not have accomplished what they did without the tireless work of lab assistants and technicians, students, engineers, etc. The discovery of superheavy elements is an example of the necessity of collaboration in science.

I loved how I was able to make connections between this book and my previous knowledge of atomic physics and the history of classifying elements. I love talking to my students, even though I don’t teach chemistry, about Mendeleev and the modern periodic table. Chapman discusses the table’s genesis briefly, but this book, of course, is more concerned with the breaking of that table. Although the current slate of superheavy elements has nicely rounded out the seventh period of the table, it’s anyone’s guess as to what the next elements to be discovered will bring in terms of chemical properties. Chapman discusses attempts to reformulate and reconceptualize the periodic table. This is a powerful reminder that devices like the periodic table are not set in stone; they are not received wisdom that describe objective truth about our universe. Rather, they are human technologies designed to be of use. When they are no longer as useful, whether because our priorities have changed or our knowledge has grown, we should replace or upgrade them.

I appreciate the confidence, too, that Chapman has in his readers. This is a book that assumes a fair amount of scientific understanding for a layperson—Chapman does not do a ton of background exposition before he describes the inner workings of some of these experiments. I say this not to put anyone off reading Superheavy but rather as a kind of endorsement of its spare style: there are no equations here. Much like Hawking’s quips regarding the sparsity of equations in A Brief History of Time, it seems that Chapman understands that his readers would rather see elision over verbosity—and I am inclined to agree. This is not a long book, yet it feels dense enough as is, entirely a result of Chapman’s assiduous research and rich storytelling.

This is a perfect book for science lovers, particularly chemistry and physics heads who want to know more about how we look for and discover new elements. I also want to give Chapman a shout-out for mentioning Desert Bus for Hope in this book! He compares looking at readouts of collision experiments to being as boring, if not more boring, than playing Desert Bus, and then he goes on to mention Desert Bus for Hope in a footnote. I was reading this the week after Desert Bus for Hope 2023 ended—what serendipity. I love nerds.

Originally posted on Kara.Reviews, where you can easily browse all my reviews and subscribe to my newsletter.

[CatReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book would be right up my alley, but sadly it was a miss for me (DNF at ~50% after each time picking up felt like a superheavy chore (pun intended)). The stories about elemental discoveries were interesting, but I was not a fan of the over-folksy, over-jokey narrative voice and the puns that kept falling flat. There is a lot of information left out in attempting to condense each elemental discovery into a short chapter. I would've preferred a more in-depth book on a narrower focus than one that crammed all the >100 atomic weight atoms into one series of vignettes.

[Cade · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like books about big science, and this is ostensibly one. However, the author seems to be more interested in the personalities and relationships of the people involved than in the details of the actual science. This is a common feature of popular science books written by non-specialists (usually journalists as we have in this case).

Beyond this general complaint, the author seems to be very uncomfortable by the idea of personal conflicts. While many pop science books lean into the virulent pettiness that often pervades among scientific competitors, this seems to do the opposite. In fact, he seems to downplay conflict and emphasize cooperation to a degree that feels forced to the point just barely shy of becoming a falsehood.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did chemistry at school but didn’t do that well at it for a variety of reasons. However, chemistry is a big thing in our household, my other half teaches it and my youngest daughter is aiming to study it at university in the Autumn. There are copies of Chemistry World around the house and there are various chemistry conversations about all manner of things over dinner.

Even though I am not very good at it, I still find the subject fascinating, hence why I picked this book up. Kit Chapman writes about the metals that appear in the bottom rows of the periodic table and the stories behind how they were found, who discovered them and the challenges in finding these heavy metals.

The story begins with the atomic bomb and the research that led up to us discovering a foolproof way of completely eradicating the entire planet of life as we know it… This is cutting edge science and to make the metals that were needed to make these weapons. They had to develop the machines to do it including the wonderfully named cyclotron. Even though these are some of the heaviest elements, they are elusive, and often the only way of detecting that they have been made by the machine if looking at the decay trails detected by the sensors.

The guys who make these heavy metals were characters in their own right. Chapman has the opportunity to meet a number of them as he travels to all the labs in America, Russia, Germany and Japan and talks to some of the people who have that rare honour of finding an element that is new to science.

I quite liked this book overall. It does venture very close to the line that separates popular science from academic papers and occasionally ventures across it. That said, Chapman has done his research well and managed to hold together a cohesive narrative about the search for these elusive heavy metals.

[Alexandra Housh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. Truly magical journey with Kit Chapman. I couldn’t ask for a more intriguing insight into the basement of the periodic table and nuclear science. Not only is it accessible and understandable in its explanations of the hard science, but it paints a picture of the personalities, circumstances, drama, and passion involved all along the way.

One of my favorites ever.

[Bjorn Bakker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellently written history on element hunting. A thrilling read.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

interesting review of chemical elements, with focus on those heavier elements, created by man, with brief lifespans

gets a good balance between the technical aspects and the history of the scientists and their efforts to push the boundaries of the periodic table

[Rama Rao · Rating 3 out of 5]

The synthetic proposition

This is a very specialized book that may interest readers who appreciate synthetic chemistry. The author narrates the story behind the discovery of new elements in the laboratory and briefly discusses the chemistry of atoms. These synthetic elements do not exist in nature and decay very rapidly because of very low half-lives. A college level chemistry is helpful to understand and appreciate the work of this author.

Much of the study of new elements took place at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory at Berkeley, California, and at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research facilities at Dubna, Russia. Other notable work also occurred at the Institute for Heavy Ion Research at Darmstadt, Germany and at Japan's RIKEN Linear Accelerator Facility in Wako.

My own interest in this book is to understand what happens when you keep adding protons and neutrons to the nuclei. At some point, the stability of the orbital electrons is destroyed as more protons are added to the nucleus. The maximum atomic number predicted is between 170 and 210; Uranium is the last naturally occurring element that has an atomic number of 92. But the nuclear stability (physics) is not the same as stability of the electronic shells (chemistry). The electronic basis for the periodicity disappears as we go higher in atomic numbers, because electronic shells 8p and 7d orbitals may be very close in energy to 5g an 6f orbitals (closely spaced energy levels.) This is reflected in a series of new elements that show multiple and barely distinguishable oxidation states.

If you look at the physics part, the nucleus also has nuclear energy shells. Just like the electrons orbiting the nucleus have electronic shells. Each nuclear shell will have a cluster of protons and neutrons. If you filled those shells, the nucleus became stable; if left unfilled, the nucleus will break apart.

The author says that element 118, oganesson does not have electron shells, then how do you call that an element? Its atomic number suggests that it is a noble element like helium, neon and argon that contain filled electron shells, and hence known to be inert. It is likely that in oganesson, the electron shells are like electron soup, which makes it quite reactive contrary to other noble elements of the periodic chart. The periodic table stops being relevant here in terms of predicting properties. Theoretical studies indicate that heavy atoms may contort - nuclei stretching out, folding in on themselves, even warping into a doughnut shape with a hole in the middle. The author does not elaborate, nor does he discuss what is “hole” in terms of spacetime warping. There is a certainly relativistic effect. We need more discussion here. Elements with very high atomic numbers challenge traditional way thinking about reality just like black holes. Tightly packed spacetime help us understand the very fabric of this universe.

[Nathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Go ahead and juke that feeling that this is too heady of a topic to keep up with--Chapman has created a impressively-paced, expertly-laid recount of how we began to explore our world to find new elements, many that only the world's most sensitive instruments can detect. We breeze through the meek beginnings of the field into the atomic age, which leads into the Cold War era, and finishing up as recently as a few months back.

It's a global competition to discover what's next on the periodic table, and so our author hops between these places of interest, interviewing the still-living contributors and relaying tales of how watershed moments unfolded (and, on numerous occasions, gives us different perspectives of the same event). It brings the chase into unknown elemental territory to a remarkably entertaining level, bestowing this part of scientific history with the excitement and weight it deserves. Successes and faults are attributed without bias (Chapman appearing to take a "just the facts, man" approach), and certain emphasis is laid upon (with a big hat put upon this idea in the latter chapters) how scientists across the world need to work together to move forward, instead of letting politics become a stumbling block.

I really don't have any complaints here. It's informative, easy to understand and read given the subject matter, and warrants future revisiting. A top-10 book of the year so far for me, of that I'm sure.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury USA/Bloomsbury Sigma for the advance read.

[Tuomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having looked into transuranic and superheavy elements as a case study in my own work, I had both an academic as well as a more mundane interest in this book. It manages to entertain quite well as a popular science book, and I read it quickly. The writing is engaging. However, there is surprisingly little science in the book. It's very much a book about the people who made the discoveries, and there are countless anecdotes about their lives, experiments, and even their physical apperance. These are interesting, in part, and sometimes entertaining, but needlessly dramatized, to the point of feeling a bit made-up. So, when it comes to my academic interests, the book did disappoint a little, as there was not much new to me here. But I would recommend it to those new to the topic, or to those interested in the lives of the various scientists that feature in the book.

[Roxanne Spencer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superheavy is an interesting and engaging review of how the periodic table was populated with the synthetic elements. Chapman writes in a conversational prose that is easy to follow and captures the personality of the scientists involved. He clearly explains the processed involved in creating new elements, and gives credit to both the chemists and physicists involved. All too often, the realm of nuclear reactors is thought to be the exclusive province of theoretical physicists, but Chapman shows how different skills were necessary to create and characterize the heavy elements. The book captures the successes, failures, lucky guesses and mistakes (because science involves all of these) and provides a book that should stand next to the perennial classic, Richard Rhodes' The Making of the Atomic Bomb. This is a must read for all scholars of scientific history as well as students eager to understand more about the nature of the periodic table.

I received a digital ARC via NetGalley

[timv · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a well researched, written and skillfully told book about a niche subject, the search for and discovery of the super heavy metals in the periodic table beyond uranium. Not a subject I was particularly interested in, but the book was well written enough to engage me to almost the end.

The author does a fine job of taking some extraordinarily complex subjects and trying to put them into identifiable terms for a popular science audience. Also, the story is written as a story of personalities and competition, which helps move it along.

As readers, we bring to every book we read our own prejudices and backgrounds. For me, this book once again pointed out the downside of this type of research science – that ego driven obsession tends to dominate these fields. At times, to the detriment of the science. In this book, part of the storyline reflects this.

Another thing that bothered me was the incredible vast amount of energy (and money) expended in these particle accelerator machines that the scientist are using compared with the very questionable value of the results of these superheavy elements studies. Some of these elements only have a half life of milliseconds. The author tried to defend the current research into superheavy elements, but his arguments failed with me.

All in all, a well written book and it was more interesting than I thought it could be.

[Ivana · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing book about the history, the drama, fraud, and intrigue of discovering heavy elements and further charting a course in humanity's quest towards understanding our very origins. My "favorite" piece of trivia is the fact that every piece of steel created after July 16 1945 is contaminated with radiation and cannot be used to make Geiger counters (for those, steel manufactured before that date has to be used).
It is also absolutely mind boggling how ignorant humanity was of the terrifying effects and lasting consequences of the atomic bomb.
Excellent book.

[pianogal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was good. And it made me smarter. I had no idea this superheavy element search was going on. I thought elements either existed or they didn't. Also, the author does a good job of using humor to explain how very complicated science works.

[Nat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great pop science book! Good balance of informative and entertaining and it's easy to read, even if you don't remember any of your high school chemistry. Chapman covers a lot of ground but the book doesn't feel bloated. Definitely would recommend to anyone interested to learn a bit more about modern science!

[Amrutha · Rating 4 out of 5]

a really good history of the discovery of the superheavy elements. not as funny as the disappearing spoon but it has its moments. the nuclear physics is explained in a way a layman can understand which is really nice

[Tayler Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even if you are not a chemist/scientist, READ THIS. It's just such a fascinating story about science around the world over the past 80 years.

[Michael Owens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super interesting as a person with a degree in chemistry to read from a science standpoint. Also is interesting looking at sexism in science in the 19th and 20th centuries, Cold War espionage intrigue, and the cultural attitudes of element discovery.

[Theo Andrews · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meretricious snooze fest

[Teagan Rockwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprisingly entertaining romp through the history of the synthetic elements. Many endearing scientists and rivals make the book a great narrative instead of a dry recounting or scientific advancement.

[Bill Leach · Rating 4 out of 5]

A breezy book on the discovery of elements above uranium in the periodic table. Mostly about the people and their personalities. The detail on the science is minimal: "A synchrotron is a particle accelerator shaped like a ring, rather than a spiral like a cyclotron."

Many items of interest - background radiation since the atmospheric testing of atomic weapons has rendered all modern steel slightly radioactive - steel for radiation testing equipment must come from pre-1945 sources such as sunken battleships.

The story starts in 1901 at McGill University where Rutherford and Soddy realized that radioactive decay had transformed thorium to radium. At the time, the heaviest element was uranium with the atomic number 92. Fermi went on to bombard a variety of materials with neutrons to initiate neutron capture where a neutron added to an atom decays resulting in an increase in atomic number of one. He succeeded in creating elements 93 and 94.

Berkeley Lab bombarded targets with helium ions, creating 97 from bombarding americanium and 98 from curium. When Ivy Mike nuclear blast was carried out, flights were made through the mushroom cloud which revealed the creation of element 99 (einsteinium) and element 100 (fermium). Back in Berkeley, they souped up their cyclotron, and were able to create 101 (mendelevium) by bombarding einsteinium with alpha particles.

Work on subsequent elements was centered in Berkeley in the US and Dubna in the USSR. Teams from each made claims for the elements 102 through 106, which would be contested by the other. Each country assigned different names to each of the four elements. The German GSI lab features the high power linear accelerator, UNILAC, and a detector that can determine the mass of the collision products. Using the cold fusion idea, they were able to drive titanium into bismuth to produce 107, iron into bismuth to make 109, and then iron into lead for 108. As the three labs all had a hand in creating these elements and had assigned their owns names to each, the international agencies developed a single set of names through a very controversial process.

The GSI lab went of to create elements 110, 111, and 112. Dubna worked with the Livermore lab in the U.S. to create 114, 116 and subsequently 115. Although the Americans destroyed all of the Japanese particle accelerators at the end of the second world war, Japan has created the RIKKEN lab that includes powerful linear accelerators and cyclotrons. They were able to create element 113. Dubna and Livermore succeeded in finding 117 and 118.

The search for elements 119 and 120 continues. They will form a new row in the periodic table.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is how great science writing is done

I loved this book. It has everything I want in a great science book: clearly-explained science, great historical perspective, a lot of biographical information on the scientists, and a good sense of humor. Even the footnotes were great. I also liked how Kit Chapman reveals his own journey in writing the book, including his first-person descriptions of the places he visited and the people he spoke to. In this, the book is as good as Rebecca Skloot’s “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” and Brenna Hassett’s “Built on Bones”. Kit CHapman’s book is a must-read for anyone interested in science.
Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book via Netgalley for review purposes.

[Ari Veloso · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superheavy by Kit Chapman is a wonderful book that delves into the niche but important fields of chemistry and nuclear physics, specifically the superheavy elements. My interest in this book was sparked by my favorite YouTuber, BobbyBroccoli. BobbyBroccoli creates intensive YouTube videos about science scandals throughout history. In my favorite video of his, he discusses Victor Ninov and how Ninov nearly got away with faking the discovery of elements 118, 116, 114, and 112. (Elements decay by elemental numbers of 2 due to alpha decay, which this book covers in detail.) BobbyBroccoli mentioned this book as a resource for his video, so it has been on my TBR list since I watched it in December.
The book goes in chronological order of element discovery, starting with Italian physicist Enrico Fermi’s makeshift lab in Rome and Glenn Seaborg's discovery of uranium and his methods for mass-producing it for the Manhattan Project. After WWII, the story moves to scientists flying planes through mushroom clouds to race back to labs and analyze data, and the transfermium wars intensified by the Cold War. It also covers the headache of naming elements and the parameters set by the IUPAC committee for declaring an element "discovered." More recent events like the Ninov scandal in the early 2000s and the importance of smaller labs, such as RIKEN in Japan (which discovered element 113) and the Australian National University (ANU), are discussed, highlighting their groundbreaking research in the quest for more superheavy elements like 119 and 120.
Chapman uses various methods to convey this expansive story spanning almost a century. He employs storytelling techniques that make you feel present at the moment, like when Al Ghiorso raced up a hill in his supercharged Beetle at midnight to analyze a sample before it decayed. Chapman also visits these labs and meets with key individuals, providing a fuller sense of these discoveries and the current state of the labs and the people involved. The necessary scientific concepts are explained straightforwardly, so anyone can enjoy the book. The inclusion of photos, diagrams, and periodic tables helps readers so you too, can verify Americanism exists on the periodic table and a joke is not being played on you.
I give this book 5 out of 5 stars because it is an engaging narrative that combines American and world history with science, celebrates both well-known and lesser-known scientists and labs, and avoids reading like a dry science textbook. There was nothing I disliked about this book, and it is easily one of my top five favorite books.
The history of the superheavy elements is conveyed in a rich, unbiased manner that makes this book very enjoyable to read. For example, it goes in-depth about the creation of neptunium and plutonium by Italian physicist Enrico Fermi in chapter one, highlighting an important part of Italian history. It also discusses how Fermi needed to flee Italy due to antisemitic views and used his Nobel Prize win to move to America. Chapman frequently highlights personal and professional aspects of scientists' lives, such as Glenn Seaborg’s relationship with his wife, Helen, and the resilience of the Japanese spirit post-WWII, which allowed the RIKEN lab in Tokyo to flourish and create element 113 with minimal equipment.
Chapman’s ability to highlight both well-known figures like Glenn Seaborg, Al Ghiorso, and Yuri Oganessian (two of whom had elements named after them while alive), and lesser-known scientists like Darlene Hoffman and James Harris, makes this book a well-rounded read. He also covers famous labs like JINR in Dubna, Lawrence Berkeley and Lawrence Livermore labs in California, and GSI in Darmstadt, as well as lesser-known ones like Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee and RIKEN in Tokyo. Oak Ridge was instrumental in the Manhattan Project, while RIKEN created element 113. This comprehensive coverage makes the book a wonderful read, diving deep into the rich history of element hunting.
Lastly, the book does a great job of being engaging without overwhelming the reader with scientific jargon. It explains fundamental concepts like the structure of an atom (protons, neutrons, and electrons) and processes like alpha and beta decay. Laboratory equipment like cyclotrons is also explained in depth to help readers appreciate the daunting task of creating elements. The book maintains its engagement throughout, with no slow spots, which is why it deserves 5 stars. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and believe that others will too, even if they are not heavily interested in science.

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review written: August 26, 2019
Star Rating: ★★★★★
Heat Rating: N/A

An Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book was received free via Netgalley for an honest review.

Superheavy is easily in contention for my book of the year. Chapman has written a book that is informative, interesting, accessible, funny, horrifying, and deeply human. And I’m talking about a book about nuclear chemistry! I just cannot find enough superlatives to shower on Superheavy.

I’m not a chemist (though I enjoyed it and was good at it in high school). I’m not a physicist. I was never good at physics. I’m not a historian, either for science or politics. None of that matters because this book was written for everyone. All the complex science and equations are distilled into easy to understand concepts that allow anyone to understand the basics of what is happening in the labs and how we determine if a new element has been discovered. And when I say easy to understand, I mean just that. I’m the science-y one in my family and when I was describing the book to my husband, he kept asking questions and every single time (thanks to this book) I was able to say “Well, actually, I can tell you exactly how that works/happens.” and he understood..

From the very beginning Chapman grabs your attention and then holds it with anecdotes that inspire, that make you laugh, that make you want to cry or rail angrily, or simply gasp in horror right along with these people who were there. I absolutely loved the stories that made me feel like I was right there, watching it happen.
It’s an exploration of the science of the transuranic elements. It’s also mini biographies of many of the key players and discoverers. It’s a history lesson about the Cold War and how politics spilled out into the scientific community. It’s a look forward into the future of element discovery.

Scenes that had a profound effect on me: Fermi racing down a hallway and then him and his wife buying the most expensive watches they could in their barely in time flight from Italy. Playing with plutonium, because. A discussion about naming elements after the planets. A board with notations and equations protected from the elements. A stroke far from help. A futile fury at being left out of two element discoveries because women can’t be chemists. A fundamental betrayal with a discovery hoax. A loss too profound for words when the parts of a particle accelerator are dumped into the Pacific. A momentary slip of a knife and a flash of blue. A Pacific atoll here one moment and gone the next in a mushroom cloud. The naming of Element 118.

Science is advancing our understanding of the world we live in and its rules. The people and places who help us better understand deserve to be celebrated and celebrate them is what Chapman does. I would recommend this book to everyone. It’s so incredibly well-written and so informative about the chemistry and the history and the politics and the people – most especially the people.

This review is ©August 2019 by Monique N. and has been posted to Netgalley.

[Eugene Miya · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was growing up Glenn Seaborg was one of those guys I would have loved to have been or worked for. Never had the chance. I did see his parking spot at LBL outside B50 "Nobel laureates only".

While Chapman's writing style is a little annoying, I can think of 2 people who should read this book, besides my normal colleagues: Daniel Radcliffe and Tom Lehrer (again, have been outside his UCSC office). Their song could use a little updating.

Covers a little of the technique and chronology of trans-Fermi elements (a new word which has to be added to dictionaries transfermi (required stupid correction). You are least don't have to calculate barns (explains what a barn is).

While I left interest in the subject, I am glad to get the other definition of what constituted cold fusion (included slowing down neutrons or heavier ions, not F&P). I had another interest once on visiting Family Day at LLNL when I saw a secure building labeled for Transuranic (in dictionary) elements (not for visitation), and asked a friend who worked there about it. His mistake. It covered the topics in this book. Building has other properties not know by the outside world.

While the book also lacks post-Bohr nuclear theory, it should have some interest to old style students of chemistry lacking nuclear chemistry. Covers naming controversies.

I could not attend the Book Passage author event as I had 4 conflicting things that day & time, and it was the furthest distance from home and personal interest but not enough to surpass other personal obligations. I wish I could have attended all.

If you like this book also read Oliver Sacks Uncle Tungsten or Jeremy Bernstein's Plutonium: A History of the World's Most Dangerous Element (plutonium book). I don't recommend the recent book on Uranium (I have to refind the author ti link) quite as strongly which the AGU endorsed.

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The fascinating story of the man-made elements, those beyond uranium in the periodic table. It’s a story I thought I knew quite well as a physicist interested in these kind of things. But I had only scratched the surface. Kit Chapman clearly loves this topic and he lets that love shine through the pages – or the screen as it may be. There are the familiar characters of Seaborg, Fermi, Lawrence and others showing up, and these may be the stars in the limelight, but here we get introduced to the rest of the cast. A diverse group of people, with remarkable lives, that played invaluable roles in the shaping, and maybe breaking of the periodic table. I especially like how Chapman highlights the achievements of women and minorities in this endeavour – theirs are often not heard at all. Chapman is also not afraid to call out the scientific communities failures, as when he writes that

“Among the scientific prisoners had been Otto Hahn, the man who, with Lise Meitner, had discovered fission. In 1944 he had won the Nobel Prize for it. Meitner, in one of the great moments of scientific sexism, got nothing (when the Nobel records were later opened, it was revealed she had been nominated and overlooked 48 times). “

Chapman also manages to give us a sniff of the difficulty involved in the discovery (or making) of the new elements. Here, the book is sometimes a little light on detail for my taste but still enough to make everyone appreciate the effort that went into the announcement of 119 whenever it comes. And to read about the early heroic exploits of Fermi and Ghiorso really made jaw drop.

This is a book that not only tells us the story about the superheavy elements and their creators (because I think they must be called creators rather than discoverers) but also manages to convince us why we should care. Why is an element that might not last more than a fraction of a second something we should spend time and effort on exploring. Of course pure scientific curiosity is part of the answers. But there is also the gleaming prospect of the Island of stability and the making of a whole new chemistry. This might have real practical implications, or it might not, but it will definitely change the way we think of elements in the future.

[fishie!! :3 · Rating 5 out of 5]

[7/17/25] I really don't have any complaints about this book. It was an incredibly entertaining read and it was so easy to keep reading when it was time to stop. I loved how Chapman wrote almost in a narrative style, which was part of why it was so entertaining. I also found it very cool that Chapman visited and wrote about the places he was telling the stories of; I enjoyed seeing the comparison between the old and the new. As a chemistry nerd, and someone who's going into their first year of college studying chemical engineering, I am quite pleased to have picked this up.

As I mentioned, I love chemistry and it's going to be a large part of my life, so the last few chapters were quite meaningful to me. The notion that chemistry as we know it may collapse with the next few elements to be discovered (and it is already sort of collapsing, as with oganesson's strange electron properties) is, quite literally, a world-shattering concept. It is easy to forget that we can be proven wrong, especially with our modern understanding and capabilities in science and technology, but the truth is that we have been wrong time and time again, and we can be wrong once more. The periodic table is structure we created, and up till now it has served science well. But we may have to edit our thinking, and with it, the periodic table itself. While this is a daunting idea, I cannot wait to see what truths the next elemental discoveries bring to light about our beautiful universe.

Also, shoutout to BobbyBroccoli on YouTube and his video "The man who tried to fake an element" for introducing me to this wonderful book. His channel is amazing if you want to learn about the scandals and controversies of the science world. This particular video is about the Ninov scandal, and while I'm sure everyone here is quite familiar with it by now, I would still absolutely recommend it for the deep dive it does into the Ninov story.

[Realms & Robots · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superheavy is the kind of nonfiction that takes an incredibly complex scientific field and breaks it down into an easy-to-understand set of narratives that are surprisingly entertaining. By the end of the book, you’ll know more about atoms and elements than you ever thought possible.

This book’s description sounded fascinating to me. I have trouble imagining how someone could invent anything out of thin air, much less an element that could change the course of human history. We get a first-hand look at the complexities of elemental creation, revealing the many scientists who worked tirelessly to expand mankind’s scientific understanding. There’s a real sense of excitement that permeates the book, showing the author’s fascination alongside the unbridled joy of these pioneers who discovered something new. At its heart, Superheavy is a history of the periodic table and its many elements. The author does a great job translating this complicated science for those of us who don’t spend much time with chemistry. 

It’s easy to imagine concepts like the periodic table have always been known but, like all things, someone had to discover it first. This is the story of those discoveries and the ripple effect they had on the scientific community and the world at large. It’s compelling and extremely readable, and I left the book with a reverence for the kind of mind that can make such a monumental scientific discovery.

NOTE: I was provided a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest, unbiased review.