The Power of Imperfections

It may be surprising to focus on and praise imperfection, but, in reality, perfection is a fiction. Every aspect of our technologies is based on understanding and exploiting imperfections in the materials we use. Imperfections are key to our use of metals, glass, electronics, computers, optical fibres, and building materials. Catalysis, as used throughout chemical industries, is dependent on imperfections, as are a wide range of modern advances in biology and medicine. This book provides examples in each area that are readily understandable to non-scientists but also aim to offer a far deeper insight into how the technologies and disciplines advance and operate. However, once we change our focus from idealised perfection to reality, the implications can extend far beyond the realm of the sciences. The second part of the book examines the importance of our ability to recognise and adapt to imperfections in such wide-ranging areas as cookery, successful career development, love, life, and the survival of humanity. Using a broad range of accessible examples, this book aims to give readers the tools to recognize technological imperfections and apply those lessons to improving several key aspects of our lives, crucially enabling them to define a world that will survive current excesses and environmental destruction.

Auteur

Peter Townsend is an experimental scientist who has worked in academia, national laboratories and industry in 9 countries, gaining expertise on a diverse range of topics including solid state physics of imperfections, ion implantation, luminescence, glass, optoelectronics, photonics, archaeology, cancer detection, and photon detectors. He has published over 550 research articles and 8 books and holds honorary doctorates from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.