Book description
THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS' CHOICE • AN ECONOMIST BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • Sand, salt, iron, copper, oil, and lithium. These fundamental materials have created empires, razed civilizations, and fed our ingenuity and greed for thousands of years. Without them, our modern world would not exist, and the battle to control them will determine our future. • Finalist for the Financial Times and Schroders Business Book of the Year AwardThe fiber-optic cables that weave the World Wide Web, the copper veins of our electric grids, the silicon chips and lithium batteries that power our phones and cars: though it can feel like we now live in a weightless world of information—what Ed Conway calls “the ethereal world”—our twenty-first-century lives are still very much rooted in the material.In fact, we dug more stuff out of the earth in 2017 than in all of human history before 1950. For every ton of fossil fuels, we extract six tons of other materials, from sand to stone to wood to metal. And in Material World, Conway embarks on an epic journey across continents, cultures, and epochs to reveal the underpinnings of modern life on Earth—traveling from the sweltering depths of the deepest mine in Europe to spotless silicon chip factories in Taiwan to the eerie green pools where lithium originates.Material World is a celebration of the humans and the human networks, the miraculous processes and the little-known companies, that combine to turn raw materials into things of wonder. This is the story of human civilization from an entirely new perspective: the ground up.
About the Author
ED CONWAY is economics and data editor of Sky News and a columnist for the Times (London). He has won numerous awards for his journalism, including most recently the 2018 Wincott Foundation Journalist of the Year Award. He lives in London.
Lskeee
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Kamikaze Grandma
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Landfill Max
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Snout Pixie
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Third Moon
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Wiccan Thunder
The ListenBook app has enriched my daily life, adding a layer of intellectual and emotional fulfillment. This app has made me realize that I don't need a lot of time to read. User-friendly brilliance! This app's functionality enhances my audiobook experience.
Stickers
I'm amazed at how this app has expanded my reading horizons. Audiobooks have made waiting in lines and queues so much more bearable. This app's support for various formats has made my audiobook collection even more diverse and exciting. I love the cloud integration. I can access my books from anywhere.
Reno Monarch
Quick access to chapters and smooth playback. Fantastic app! Great app for audiobook enthusiasts. ListenBook supports a wide range of formats.
360
My child has also fallen in love with audiobooks, all thanks to the app's kid-friendly collection. ListenBook's intuitive design and thoughtful features have made my audiobook experience delightful. Kudos to the developers for optimizing this app for iOS 16. It runs like a dream on my device.
Lightweight
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Junkyard Dog
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Goatee Shield
Navigating through chapters is a breeze. It's like having a personal reading guide. This app is perfect for audiobook lovers. The interface is beautiful and easy to navigate.
IceDog
This app is not just about convenience – it's a gateway to new horizons of knowledge. I'm in awe of this app's ability to make reading so accessible and convenient. I'm amazed at how this app has made reading fit into every aspect of my life. Automated artwork and metadata extraction make my library look organized and visually appealing. The playback controls are so responsive. No lag at all.
Intimidation Station
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Roadblock
An audiobook lover's dream come true. So many options, I'm in heaven! Kudos to ListenBook for optimizing the app for iOS 16 – it shows their dedication to excellence. Audiobook immersion without fuss – this app's ease of use is commendable. What a fantastic listening experience! The narrator brought the characters to life with distinct voices and emotional depth. The pacing was perfect - not too fast to lose details, not too slow to become boring. I particularly appreciated how well the narrator conveyed the atmosphere of key scenes.
2nd Hand Joe
ListenBook Pro's noise reduction feature is a blessing for clear listening in noisy environments. Book groups are a thoughtful addition. I can group related titles for easy access. The intuitive interface and efficient navigation make this app a pleasure to use every day. The statistics tracking feature is very useful. ListenBook helps me keep track of my listening time.
Goldman
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Nice Gnome
With ListenBook, I can keep track of my audiobook consumption and explore new content with ease. ListenBook's support for playlists in CUE format is a detail-oriented touch I truly appreciate. The ability to download audiobooks directly is fantastic. ListenBook is very convenient. An acceptable audiobook that met basic expectations. No complaints about quality but nothing remarkable either. Would listen to this narrator again but wouldn't seek them out.
Playing a wide variety of audio formats
Works on all devices with iOS 13 and newer
Huge amount of features for a small price
Frequent updates to add new features and improve existing ones
Advanced playback controls
Live sound processing
Changing the timbre of the reader's voice and noise reduction
Translated into more than 20 languages
If you love listening to fiction audiobooks, ListenBook has features to make the process easier.
Edit book data: title, author, cover
Use equalizer to make the sound comfortable for you
Adjust the playback speed
Enjoy dark and light app themes
Supported formats: MP3, M4B, AWB, FLAC, OGG audio files and many more (must be DRM free)
Auto-Bookmarks make it easy to find your place
AirPlay support allows redirection of audio output.
VoiceOver support
Dark mode for night owls
Convenient bookmarking system helps you mark the most important places.
Unlimited bookmarks for each audiobook
Put your own cover on the wager
Share your audiobook with friends
Lock-screen control
Customise app with extensive options
Sleep timer with shake to reset, set custom notification sounds, and a few unique options
Auto rewind depending on paused time, customize rewind times to your liking
Removing background noise from recordings made in classrooms and meetings
Changing the timbre of the reader's voice for a better listening experience