Listen free for 30 days

  • The Elements We Live By

  • How Iron Helps Us Breathe, Potassium Lets Us See, and Other Surprising Superpowers of the Periodic Table
  • Written by: Anja Røyne
  • Narrated by: Donna Postel
  • Length: 5 hrs and 54 mins
  • 5.0 out of 5 stars (1 rating)

Try for $0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
The Elements We Live By cover art

The Elements We Live By

Written by: Anja Røyne
Narrated by: Donna Postel
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $22.26

Buy Now for $22.26

Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

An around-the-world journey to discover where in the wild we can find the elements of life and the surprising ways they're essential to our survival

We all know that we depend on elements for survival - from the oxygen in the air we breathe to the carbon in the molecular structures of all living things. But we don't often stop to appreciate how, say, phosphorous holds our DNA together or how potassium powers our optic nerves so that we can see.

In The Elements We Live By, physicist and award-winning author Anja Røyne takes us on an astonishing journey through chemistry and physics, introducing the building blocks from which we humans - and the world - are made. Not only does Røyne explain why our bodies need iron, phosphorus, silicon, potassium, and many more elements in just the right amounts in order to function, she also leads us around the world to where these precious elements are found (some of them in ever-shrinking quantities).

You'll understand how precariously balanced our lives - and ways of life - really are, and you'll see these unsung heroes of the periodic table in an entirely new light.
©2018, 2020 Anja Røyne; translation copyright 2020 by The Experiment, LLC (P)2020 Tantor
Nature & Ecology Environment Chemistry Industrial & Manufacturing
Show more Show less

What listeners say about The Elements We Live By

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 0 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    0
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Audible.ca reviews

Amazon Reviews
Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Julien Desrosiers

Very good.

Very interesting book. Learned a few things about atoms, electrons and chemical reactions. Highly recommended.

Report this

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!