Maikel Kuijpers is assistant professor in Archaeology at Leiden University. He looks at mankind from the perspective of material culture. He investigates our handling of materials and how people have developed skills and knowledge about materials throughout the centuries. For The Correspondent he writes about four fundamental materials of our modern civilization: concrete, steel, plastic and fertiliser.Source
Image by PostNew (for The Correspondent)Henry Bessemer was never cut out for school. He had better things to do, so he never finished. Instead, by the age of 17, he had gone into business for himself – as an inventor. By the time he was 30, he had invented the sugar cane extruder, a process for making gold paint from bronze powder and a method for manufacturing pencils from graphite. Before he was 40, he had 110 patents and a small fortune to his name.But all that was merely prelude. In 1856, at age 43, Bessemer set off a revolution with a material that was to completely change and...…Image by PostNew (for The Correspondent)Henry Bessemer was never cut out for school. He had better things to do, so he never finished. Instead, by the age of 17, he had gone into business for himself – as an inventor. By the time he was 30, he had invented the sugar cane extruder, a process for making gold paint from bronze powder and a method for manufacturing pencils from graphite. Before he was 40, he had 110 patents and a small fortune to his name.But all that was merely prelude. In 1856, at age 43, Bessemer set off a revolution with a material that was to completely change and...WW…
Animation by PostNew (for The Correspondent). Infographics: Ted du BoiWant to challenge yourself? Try not touching anything made of plastic for a whole day.There’s a good chance you sleptwith plastic in it last night. You were woken up by the alarm clock on your smartphone,You pulled the charger out of the plug socket without being electrocuted because all the electricity in your house is enclosed in a layer of protective plastic. First things first: have a shower, brush your teeth, get a cup of coffee. That showerhead contains plastic, and the shower hose is made of plastic, just like...…Animation by PostNew (for The Correspondent). Infographics: Ted du BoiWant to challenge yourself? Try not touching anything made of plastic for a whole day.There’s a good chance you sleptwith plastic in it last night. You were woken up by the alarm clock on your smartphone,You pulled the charger out of the plug socket without being electrocuted because all the electricity in your house is enclosed in a layer of protective plastic. First things first: have a shower, brush your teeth, get a cup of coffee. That showerhead contains plastic, and the shower hose is made of plastic, just like...WW…
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