Disclaimer: machine translated by DeepL which may contain errors.
Molecular Geochemistry
Yoshio Takahashi, Professor, Department of Earth and Planetary Science
| Edited by Yoshio Takahashi |
| Molecular Geochemistry |
| Nagoya University Press (2021) |
| isbn 978-4-8158-1018-4 |
While we are thrilled by news such as the Hayabusa2 project that stirs up human dreams, not a day goes by without hearing that the IPCC has determined that human activities are the cause of global warming and that keywords such as "decarbonized society" and "SDGs" are not being used. The objects and phenomena related to these "dreams" and "challenges" of humanity involve some kind of substance, and that substance is made up of elements. Chemistry deals with the interactions of atoms and molecules produced by the properties of these elements. However, the science that tries to understand macro phenomena occurring on the earth, environment, and planet through the properties of elements and the interactions of atoms and molecules (= geochemistry) is not so well known. One of the reasons for this is that it is difficult to directly obtain information on the interactions of atoms and molecules in rocks, minerals, soils, water, and the atmosphere because of their complex composition. However, recent developments in advanced analytical methods, geochemical modeling, and quantum chemical calculations have made it possible to link these atom-molecule interactions with macroscopic phenomena with evidence. In this book, we call the field of molecular geochemistry, which is the study of the macroscopic phenomena through the microscopic ones, and explain its fundamentals as well as the latest research. As shown by the fact that "a glass of water in front of you contains 4,000 atoms that made up Newton's brain," all the elements go around the cycle of rocks, soil, water, atmosphere, and living organisms, changing their forms in various ways and causing macro phenomena. These are sometimes man's "dreams" or "issues" (i.e., the global environment, resources, etc.). The interest and importance of freely moving between micro and macro phenomena is the real appeal of molecular geochemistry, and I hope that this book will give you a taste of it.
(Related Lectures : Introduction to Earth and Planetary Environmental Studies (College of Arts and Sciences), Geoenvironmental Chemistry and Space Geochemistry (Faculty of Science))
Published in Faculty of Science News, September 2021