Includes bibliographical references.

Ozone: location, location, location -- Sodium chloride: salt of the earth -- Water: taking the extraordinary for granted -- Sulphur dioxide: food, glorious food -- Silicon dioxide: flexible glass -- Ammonia: bread from air -- Magnetite: finding your way -- Sulphuric acid: the status symbol -- Lithium iron phosphate: the spark of life -- Carbon dioxide: smoke and bubbles -- Urea: another man's waste -- Methanethiol: the big stink -- Ethene: the ripe banana -- Ethanol: a drink to lily the pink -- Polytetrafluoroethene: the Teflon coat -- Propanethial-S-oxide: the booby trap -- Nitroglycerin: a bigger bang for your buck -- Diethyl ether: an end to pain -- Vitamin C: the scurvy knave -- Glucose: stoking the furnace -- Saccharin: licking the spoon -- Caffeine: a mind-altering substance -- Phenylethylamine: the feel-good factor -- Octane: the need for speed -- Tetraethyl lead: a bumpy ride -- Acetylsalicylic acid: a nice cup of tea -- Adrenaline: the warning sign -- Nicotine: Mr Nice... but nasty -- 9-oxo-2-decenoic acid: the language of bees -- Adenosine triphosphate: the zombie -- Tryptophan: the postprandial snooze -- Myristicin: the spice of life -- Cellulose: taking notes -- Nylon: plastic fantastic -- Geosmin: the smell of rain -- Melatonin: things that go bump in the night -- DDT: saving the world -- Cyanidin: colourful language -- Penicillin: true perseverance -- Chlorpromazine: mother's little helper -- Morphine: what's in a name -- Melanin: the white elephant -- Capsaicin: a question of trust -- Porphine: the support staff -- Quinine: the conquistador -- Retinal: let there be light -- Progesterone: women's lib -- Mauveine: fifty shades -- Cholesterol: Mr Duplicitous -- Insulin: the good manager -- Botulinum toxin: the fountain of youth -- DNA: the world dominator.

"What happens when you really get under the skin of the world around you? Everything that surrounds us - and we ourselves - are made of molecules, constructed from a limited set of elements that can combine to form an almost limitless kaleidoscope of possibilities. Dr. Kathryn Harkup reveals the inner lives of the invisible molecules that make up our world, ranging from the fundamental to the frivolous; via the psychedelic effects of caffeine to the deadly march of CO2 emissions. This is a book about the stories of discovery, the quirks of science and of human history that have enhanced our appreciation and understanding of the world."--Back cover.