Overview

An impassioned tour of the surprising history and fascinating science of friction. Friction, the force that resists motion, is synonymous with difficulty and complication. If you've ever replaced tires worn smooth by the road or reached for a can of WD-40 to fix a creaking door hinge, then you know the headache this force can cause. In this book, Jennifer Vail reveals beneath the difficulty and complication a force as enigmatic and intriguing as it is central to the human story. She traces how, from the moment we first harnessed the power of fire to the Industrial Revolution and beyond, the quest to manipulate friction has driven innovation, culture, and even our own evolution. Today, as scientists study friction in the most unexpected of places, they're learning why some viruses lie dormant for years while others devastate our cells immediately; where elusive dark matter might be found; and how the climate crisis ought finally be addressed. And yet, for all they've learned, scientists still haven't cracked the greatest mystery of all: how to bridge the distinct laws that govern friction at its largest and smallest scales. Connecting the discoveries of historical luminaries like Newton, da Vinci, and the Wright brothers to the latest breakthroughs in engineering, Friction is a captivating biography of this unsung hero of the physical world.

Full Product Details

9780674290662

Table of Contents

Reviews

Traces the history of tribology—the study of friction—from its roots in ancient history…Readers will be inspired to start noticing how this hidden force shapes the world around them. * Publishers Weekly * This book takes us on an incredibly smooth and enjoyable journey through the ubiquity of an underappreciated force. From our knee joints to syringes, Vail has opened my eyes to what an important force friction is. -- Roma Agrawal, author of <i>Nuts and Bolts</i> A wonderfully entertaining masterclass on a subject that only gets a fraction of the attention it deserves. Reading this book shows the extraordinary ways in which our lives are fundamentally influenced by friction. Vail takes us on an extraordinary journey from the subatomic to the galactic, by way of seismology, Gore-Tex, Crayola, lawn tennis, windshield wipers, black holes, leaves on train lines … and so much more. She underpins these examples with theory from material science, chemistry, fluid dynamics, and mechanics to leave the reader with a memorable and well-grounded understanding of why things move – or don’t move – and why it matters. Having read this book, I will never look at a can of WD-40 in quite the same way again. -- Tim Minshall, author of <i>How Things Are Made</i> Friction gets a bad rap for slowing things down, so who knew that learning more about it could be frictionless and fun? The brilliant Jennifer Vail makes the science of friction engaging and illuminating while also taking us deep into the surprising ways it impacts the world all around us. -- David Biello, author of <i>The Unnatural World</i> Jennifer Vail takes us on a star-studded, deliciously tactile journey through the history of tribology, shining a light on the quiet role of an oft-forgotten force. Full of materiality and wonderful stories, Friction reveals the surprising depth of the science of surfaces. -- Anna Ploszajski, author of <i>Handmade</i> Friction completely transformed my understanding of tribology. What was once a vaguely familiar term is now a fascinating lens through which I see the world. Vail’s enthusiastic and meticulously researched deep dive reveals how this seemingly obscure field underpins everything from beautiful music and vaccine delivery to advancements in flight. I now notice friction everywhere, and I finally understand why leaves on the line can bring UK trains to a halt! -- Yasmin Ali, author of <i>Power Up</i>

Friction completely transformed my understanding of tribology. What was once a vaguely familiar term is now a fascinating lens through which I see the world. Vail’s enthusiastic and meticulously researched deep dive reveals how this seemingly obscure field underpins everything from beautiful music and vaccine delivery to advancements in flight. I now notice friction everywhere, and I finally understand why leaves on the line can bring UK trains to a halt! -- Yasmin Ali, author of <i>Power Up</i> This book takes us on an incredibly smooth and enjoyable journey through the ubiquity of an underappreciated force. From our knee joints to syringes, Vail has opened my eyes to what an important force friction is. -- Roma Agrawal, author of <i>Nuts and Bolts</i> Jennifer Vail takes us on a star-studded, deliciously tactile journey through the history of tribology, shining a light on the quiet role of an oft-forgotten force. Full of materiality and wonderful stories, Friction reveals the surprising depth of the science of surfaces. -- Anna Ploszajski, author of <i>Handmade</i>

Author Information

Jennifer R. Vail is the founder of DuPont’s first tribology research lab and a member of the senior leadership team at TA Instruments, a manufacturer of tools used for analyzing the physical properties of materials. Her TED Talk, “The Science of Friction,” has been viewed more than two million times.

Tab Content 6

Countries Available