Fireworks
Pop Culture
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Fireworks
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Narrated by:
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Ellouise Rothwell
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By:
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iMinds
About this listen
Learn the history of Fireworks with iMinds insightful audio knowledge series.A Chinese book from 850 CE, called Classified Essentials of the Mysterious Tao of the True Origin of Things, warns the reader that if sulphur, realgar and saltpetre are heated with honey, they produce smoke and flames. Thus begins the history of artificially made fire. Taoism permeates every facet of Chinese society. Lao Tzu introduced Taoist thought in the sixth-century BCE as a purely philosophical discipline. Its centrality to Chinese society led it to have an effect on all intellectual pursuits, including alchemy, which led to the development of gunpowder in the eighth-century CE and, subsequently, fireworks as we know them today.
With a few adjustments to the original concoction, alchemists through the ages settled on the ingredients of gunpowder as saltpetre, sulphur and charcoal. Saltpetre was easy to access, as it appeared as a white crust on certain soils.
Perfect to listen to while commuting, exercising, shopping or cleaning the house.. iMinds brings knowledge to your MP3 with 8 minute information segments to whet your mental appetite and broaden your mind.
iMinds offers 12 main categories; become a Generalist by increasing your knowledge of Business, Politics, People, History, Pop Culture, Mystery, Crime, Culture, Religion, Concepts, Science and Sport. Clean and concise, crisp and engaging, discover what you never knew you were missing.
iMinds is the knowledge solution for the information age cutting through the white noise to give you quick, accurate knowledge .. Perfect your dinner party conversation, impress your boss - an excellent way to discover topics of interest for the future.
©2009 iMinds Pty Ltd (P)2009 iMinds Pty LtdListeners also enjoyed...
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3 out of 5 stars
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We might be screwed, but... science!
- By Ryan on 11-28-15
By: Lewis Dartnell
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Generalist, Volume 1
- By: iMinds
- Narrated by: Luca James Lee, Ellouise Rothwell
- Length: 1 hr and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 38
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 26
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 26
A compilation of diverse topics across our 12 categories. You will learn about: the history of whaling, the art of film noir, the psychology behind the Stockholm Syndrome, the history of the U.S. Federal Reserve, the story of Joan of Arc, the discovery of penicillin, the science of meteorites, the history of the D-Day Invasion, the unexplained phenomenon of crop circles, the adventure of climbing Everest, the thought of Confucius, and the start of fireworks.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent Compilation
- By Michael T Schreiber on 09-18-09
By: iMinds
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Ignition!
- An Informal History of Liquid Rocket Propellants
- By: John Drury Clark, Isaac Asimov - foreward
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 9 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 667
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 550
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 547
Ignition! is the story of the search for a rocket propellant which could be trusted to take man into space. This search was a hazardous enterprise carried out by rival labs who worked against the known laws of nature, with no guarantee of success or safety. John Drury Clark writes with irreverent and eyewitness immediacy about the development of the explosive fuels strong enough to negate the relentless restraints of gravity. The resulting volume is as much a memoir as a work of history, sharing a behind-the-scenes view of an enterprise that eventually took men to the moon.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Science man lists names of chemicals for 9 hours
- By Adrian on 05-06-19
By: John Drury Clark, and others
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How to Invent Everything
- A Survival Guide for the Stranded Time Traveler
- By: Ryan North
- Narrated by: Ryan North
- Length: 12 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 430
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 365
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 364
What would you do if a time machine hurled you thousands of years into the past...and then broke? How would you survive? With this book as your guide, you'll survive - and thrive - in any period in Earth's history. Best-selling author and time-travel enthusiast Ryan North tells you how to invent all the modern conveniences we take for granted - from first principles. This manual contains all the science, engineering, art, philosophy, facts, and figures required for even the most clueless time traveler to build a civilization from the ground up.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Get the book
- By Tim McNerney on 11-26-18
By: Ryan North
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The Most Powerful Idea in the World
- A Story of Steam, Industry, and Invention
- By: William Rosen
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 13 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 193
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 145
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 144
Award-winning author William Rosen tells the story of the men responsible for the Industrial Revolution and the machine that drove it: the steam engine.
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4 out of 5 stars
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A Revelation about a Revolution
- By Roy on 08-01-10
By: William Rosen
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Paper
- Paging Through History
- By: Mark Kurlansky
- Narrated by: Andrew Garman
- Length: 13 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 388
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 331
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 323
Paper is one of the simplest and most essential pieces of human technology. For the past two millennia, the ability to produce it in ever more efficient ways has supported the proliferation of literacy, media, religion, education, commerce, and art; it has formed the foundation of civilizations, promoting revolutions and restoring stability.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Very enjoyable
- By Vicki on 02-16-17
By: Mark Kurlansky
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Energy
- A Human History
- By: Richard Rhodes
- Narrated by: Jacques Roy
- Length: 11 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 765
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 651
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 650
Through an unforgettable cast of characters, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Rhodes explains how wood gave way to coal and coal made room for oil, as we now turn to natural gas, nuclear power, and renewable energy. Rhodes looks back on five centuries of progress, through such influential figures as Queen Elizabeth I, King James I, Benjamin Franklin, Herman Melville, John D. Rockefeller, and Henry Ford.
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4 out of 5 stars
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No more accents, please!
- By Ned Gulley on 08-30-18
By: Richard Rhodes
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Napoleon's Buttons
- 17 Molecules That Changed History
- By: Penny Le Couteur, Jay Burreson
- Narrated by: Laural Merlington
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 309
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 269
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Story4 out of 5 stars 270
Napoleon's Buttons is the fascinating account of 17 groups of molecules that have greatly influenced the course of history. These molecules provided the impetus for early exploration, and made possible the voyages of discovery that ensued. The molecules resulted in grand feats of engineering and spurred advances in medicine and law; they determined what we now eat, drink, and wear. A change as small as the position of an atom can lead to enormous alterations in the properties of a substance.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Wish one of the authors would have read this book
- By A.J. on 03-09-12
By: Penny Le Couteur, and others
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Technology of the Gods
- The Incredible Sciences of the Ancients
- By: David Hatcher Childress
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 9 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 430
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 364
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 364
Popular Lost Cities author David Hatcher Childress takes us into the amazing world of ancient technology, from computers in antiquity to the flying machines of the gods. Childress looks at the technology that was allegedly used in Atlantis and the theory that the Great Pyramid of Egypt was originally a gigantic power station. He examines tales of ancient flight and the technology that it involved; how the ancients used electricity; megalithic building techniques; the use of crystal lenses and the fire from the gods; and more.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Very insightful
- By Hagood on 03-20-18
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Coal
- A Human History
- By: Barbara Freese
- Narrated by: Shelly Frasier
- Length: 7 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 378
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 185
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Story4 out of 5 stars 191
The fascinating, often surprising story of how a simple black rock altered the course of history. Yet the mundane mineral that built our global economy, and even today powers our electrical plants, has also caused death, disease, and environmental destruction. In this remarkable book, Barbara Freese takes us on a rich historical journey that begins three hundred million years ago and spans the globe.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Uses Coal to push her Political Agenda
- By Kismet on 08-22-06
By: Barbara Freese
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Beer
- Tap into the Art and Science of Brewing
- By: Charles Bamforth
- Narrated by: Chris Sorensen
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 46
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 38
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 38
Beer offers an amusing and informative account of the art and science of brewing, examining the history of brewing, and how the brewing process has evolved through the ages. The third edition features more information concerning the history of beer, especially in the United States; British, Japanese, and Egyptian beer; beer in the context of health and nutrition; and the various styles of beer. Author Charles Bamforth has also added detailed information on prohibition, Sierra Nevada, and life as a maltster.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Commercial Brewing
- By taylor brackeen on 03-15-18
By: Charles Bamforth
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The Domestic Revolution
- How the Introduction of Coal into Victorian Homes Changed Everything
- By: Ruth Goodman
- Narrated by: Jennifer M. Dixon
- Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 100
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 85
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 83
No single invention epitomizes the Victorian era more than the black cast-iron range. Aware that the 21st-century has reduced it to a quaint relic, Ruth Goodman was determined to prove that the hot coal stove provided so much more than morning tea: It might even have kick-started the Industrial Revolution. Wielding the wit and passion seen in How to Be a Victorian, Goodman traces the tectonic shift from wood to coal in the mid-16th century - from sooty trials and errors during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I to the totally smog-clouded reign of Queen Victoria.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Zombie Apocalypse
- By PeachPecan on 12-25-20
By: Ruth Goodman
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The Invention of Air
- By: Steven Johnson
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 6 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 302
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 168
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Story4 out of 5 stars 170
Best-selling author Steven Johnson recounts - in dazzling, multidisciplinary fashion - the story of the brilliant man who embodied the relationship between science, religion, and politics for America's Founding Fathers. The Invention of Air is a title of world-changing ideas wrapped around a compelling narrative, a story of genius and violence and friendship in the midst of sweeping historical change that provokes us to recast our understanding of the Founding Fathers.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Good scientific history
- By Roger on 05-03-10
By: Steven Johnson
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The Alchemy of Air
- A Jewish Genius, a Doomed Tycoon, and the Scientific Discovery That Fed the World but Fueled the Rise of Hitler
- By: Thomas Hager
- Narrated by: Adam Verner
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,582
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,353
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,349
At the dawn of the 20th century, humanity was facing global disaster. Mass starvation, long predicted for the fast-growing population, was about to become a reality. A call went out to the worlds scientists to find a solution. This is the story of the two enormously gifted, fatally flawed men who found it: the brilliant, self-important Fritz Haber and the reclusive, alcoholic Carl Bosch. Together they discovered a way to make bread out of air, built city-sized factories, controlled world markets, and saved millions of lives.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great Book Thoroughly Researched
- By Terry A. Gray on 10-21-11
By: Thomas Hager
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The Disappearing Spoon
- And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements
- By: Sam Kean
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 6,057
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,787
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,796
Reporter Sam Kean reveals the periodic table as it’s never been seen before. Not only is it one of man's crowning scientific achievements, it's also a treasure trove of stories of passion, adventure, betrayal, and obsession. The infectious tales and astounding details in The Disappearing Spoon follow carbon, neon, silicon, and gold as they play out their parts in human history, finance, mythology, war, the arts, poison, and the lives of the (frequently) mad scientists who discovered them.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Great Book, Great Narration, But...
- By Henny Button on 09-18-10
By: Sam Kean
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The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight: Revised and Updated
- The Fate of the World and What We Can Do Before It's Too Late
- By: Thom Hartmann, Neale Donald Walsch - associate editor
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 18 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 93
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 79
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 80
While everything appears to be collapsing around us - ecodamage, genetic engineering, virulent diseases, water shortages, global famine, wars - we can still do something about it and create a world that will work for us and for our children's children. The inspiration for Leonardo DiCaprio's feature documentary movie The 11th Hour, The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight details what is happening to our planet, the reasons for our culture's blind behavior, and how we can fix the problem.
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5 out of 5 stars
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One of the Most Important Books of our Time
- By Jana on 04-24-20
By: Thom Hartmann, and others
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Catching Stardust
- Comets, Asteroids and the Birth of the Solar System
- By: Natalie Starkey
- Narrated by: Alison Campbell
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 21
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 20
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 20
Icy, rocky, sometimes dusty, always mysterious – comets and asteroids are among the Solar System's very oldest inhabitants, formed within a swirling cloud of gas and dust in the area of space that eventually hosted the Sun and its planets. Locked within each of these extra-terrestrial objects is the 4.6-billion-year wisdom of Solar System events, and by studying them at close quarters using spacecraft we can coerce them into revealing their closely-guarded secrets. This offers us the chance to answer some fundamental questions about our planet and its inhabitants.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Chasing star stuff always results in technological advances
- By Richard Duede on 12-30-18
By: Natalie Starkey
What listeners say about Fireworks
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- mayheartreads
- 06-28-24
Educational
It is fascinating to know that one of the earliest inventions known to man had minimal changes in production. The first part discussed fireworks' brief history and origin and their chemical composition. The last part presented its popularity to different people worldwide and how it adds light and excitement to celebrations—truly a timeless invention.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Debbie
- 01-15-21
History of Fireworks, Gunpowder and Explosives
Little did I know that explosives and fireworks date back to China in the year 850 AD. This eight minute listen is interesting and informative, giving the listener a concise account of the discovery of the alchemy of fireworks, gunpowder and explosives. Fun listen.
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