Includes: Amazing Materials: Properties of Matter- A look at composite material reveals why two can sometimes be better than one, with properties that make them amazingly multi-functional- and in some cases extremely valuable, The Elements- Tempted to snore over the periodic table of elements? Not after poet Roger McGough, in inspired dramatic fashion, traces the evolution of chemistry from the Greeks to the present day. McGough reveals the madness of mercury, the folly of gold and the shadowy art of alchemy. Explore how early scientists turned alchemy into chemistry, ultimately building this new discipline around the periodic table, and Invention: Elements & Compounds - What happens when we manipulate nature's elements for our own benefit? Learn about Madame Curie's discovery of radioactivity. See how reverse osmosis extracts salt from seawater. Discover why aspirin relieves pain.