改變世界的17種物質
發自悉尼：分子並非同時被創造。它們當中有的已經存在億萬年，或者造成環境的大破壞，或者讓世界變得更加豐富多彩。在這裏，我們將選出十七種改變人類歷史進程的物質分子。
PENICILLIN — R-C9H11N2O4S
When British microbiologist Alexander Fleming stumbled upon penicillin in 1928, he couldn't have imagined the impact it would have on modern medicine. Fleming noticed that Petri dishes with mould on them grew no bacteria, and in doing so discovered the first antibiotic. Before penicillin came into widespread use in the 1940s, wounds and diseases like syphilis were killers; antibiotics have since saved an estimated 200 million lives.
青黴素R-C9H11N2O4S
1928年，當英國微生物學家亞歷山大·弗萊明首次發現青黴素時，他並沒有料到這種物質對現代醫學造成怎樣的影響。弗萊明注意到，在發黴的培養皿中沒有生長任何細菌，由此，他發現了第一種抗生素。到1940年代青黴素被廣泛使用之前，像梅毒這樣的創傷病害便足以殺死人類；自從抗生素被發現之後，據估計它們至少拯救了兩億生命。
SODIUM CHLORIDE — NaCl
Salt paved the way for modern civilization; it was used to preserve vegetables and meat as long as 4,000 years ago. This gave our ancestors the freedom to store food for hard times, travel long distances and live in harsh climates. Salt is also an important ingredient in the production of chemicals, soap and paper. Sodium chloride is in such high demand that in 2006 alone, 240 million tones were produced.
氯化鈉NaCl
鹽鋪就了現代文明的道路；早在四千年前，它就被用來爲蔬菜和肉類保鮮。這讓我們的祖先在困難時期、長途旅行或惡劣氣候條件下可以自由保存食品。鹽也是製造化學品、肥皂和紙張的重要成分。人們對於氯化鈉的需求是如此之高，僅在2006年，它們的產量就達到兩億四千萬噸。
POTASSIUM NITRATE — KNO3
As the key ingredient in gunpowder, potassium nitrate allowed humans to propel bullets from guns and, in doing so, changed the face of warfare. Today, there are more than 500 million handguns in circulation, causing at least 1,000 deaths every day. The formula for gunpowder was likely discovered in the 8th century, although it wasn't until the 13th century that it was first used in canons.
硝酸鉀KNO3
作爲製造黑火藥的關鍵成分，正是硝酸鉀推動子彈飛出槍膛，而且這樣一來還改變了戰爭的面貌。如今，市面上有超過五億支手槍在流通，每天造成至少一千人死亡。黑火藥的配方似乎早在公元八世紀就已被發現，但直到十三世紀才被用於火炮。
ASPIRIN — C9H8O4
Aspirin is the most widely used drug in the world, with more than 100 billion tablets consumed annually. The active component, salicylic acid, originally from willow bark, was used as a folk remedy as long ago as the 5th century BC. But it wasn't until 1897 that German chemist Felix Hoffman managed to synthesize aspirin in a pure and stable form, making it one of the earliest synthetic drugs. Aspirin is now taken for a huge variety of afflictions, from fever and arthritis to the prevention of heart attacks, stroke and dementia.
阿司匹林C9H8O4
阿司匹林是世界上使用最廣泛的藥物，每年消耗量高達一千億片。它來自早在公元前五世紀就被用於民間配方的柳樹皮，是這種樹皮的一種有效成分。不過直到1897年，德國藥劑師費力克斯·霍夫曼才設法把它合成爲一種純淨和穩定的形態，因此它並不是最早的合成藥物。 SODIUM STEARATE — NaC18H35O2
It's hard to imagine how life might have smelled for the human race prior to the invention of soap. More fastidious hygiene has also been important for stemming the spread of disease. Sodium stearate, the active ingredient in soap, works its magic by helping oil to dissolve in water. According to the United Nations Children's Fund, hand washing with soap prevents up to 1.4 million deaths per year through acute respiratory infections.
硬脂酸鈉 NaC18H35O2
很難想象發明肥皂之前的人類生活中充斥着怎樣的氣味。而更好的衛生習慣也極大阻礙了疾病的傳播。作爲肥皂的重要組成部分，硬脂酸鈉其魔法般的工作原理在於可以把油脂溶解在水中。據聯合國兒童基金會統計，用肥皂洗手的行爲每年可以讓一百四十萬人免於因嚴重呼吸道疾病而死亡。
SILICON — Si
In 1954 the first silicon transistor initiated what has become a A$160 billion global market in semiconductors. Silicon is a key component of computer chips and circuits and it's estimated that there are currently more than one billion computers in use worldwide. Silicon is also used in solar cells, waterproofing treatments and seals, explosives and breast implants.
硅Si
從1954年第一個硅晶體管誕生開始，現在已經發展爲價值一千六百億美元的半導體產業。硅是計算機芯片和電路的關鍵部件，據估計，目前全世界有超過十億臺計算機。另外，硅還被用於太陽能電池，防水密封，炸藥以及胸部填充。
RUBBER — C5H8
Natural rubber has been gathered from the sap of plants for centuries. But rubber only began to be used widely after 1839, when Charles Goodyear found a way to make it strong, durable and elastic. In 1931 U.S. chemist Elmer Bolton developed a synthetic version, and in 2005 we produced 21 million tonnes, with tyres and tubes accounting for 56 per cent of consumption. Other applications include gloves, rubber bands and balloons. Even some rockets and missiles are powered by synthetic, rubber-based fuels.
橡膠C5H8
從植物汁液中收集天然橡膠已經有幾個世紀的歷史。不過，直到1839年之後橡膠纔得到廣泛應用，當時查爾斯·固特異發現了一種讓它變得更強、更靈活，更持久耐用的方法。1931年，美國化學家埃爾莫·鮑爾頓發明了合成橡膠，僅2005年，全球就生產了兩千一百萬噸橡膠，其中百分之五十六被用於製造輪胎和各種軟管。其他應用還包括手套、橡皮筋和氣球。甚至一些火箭和導彈也由以橡膠爲基礎的合成燃料驅動。
SILICON DIOXIDE — SiO2
As the principal component in glass, silicon dioxide was used as early as 5000 BC. All the panes of glass in the world today cover about four billion square meters. Glass has also been essential for test tubes, telescopes, microscopes, mirrors and camera lenses.
二氧化硅SiO2
作爲玻璃的主要成分，二氧化硅早在公元前5000年就被使用。如今全世界所有玻璃板總計約有四十億平方米。此外，玻璃被用來製作試管、望遠鏡、顯微鏡、鏡子和相機鏡頭。 POLYETHYLENE — (C2H4)N
By far the most popular plastic, polyethylene is used in grocery bags, artificial joints and plastic bottles. It's even found in chewing gum. In fact, polyethylene is so ubiquitous that it's hard to imagine life without it. But in 1933 when English chemists Eric Fawcett and Reginald Gibson discovered it, they thought of it as nothing more than a waste product. Over 70 years later, more than 60 million tones of polyethylene are made each year; but there is a downside, as much of it ends up in landfill where it takes hundreds of years to degrade.
聚乙烯(C2H4)N
由於塑料得到大家喜愛，因此聚乙烯被廣泛用於食品包裝、人工接頭和塑料瓶，它甚至可以用於製造香口膠。實際上，聚乙烯在生活中應用如此之廣，很難想象哪裏可以缺得了它。不過，在1933年英國化學家埃裏克·福西特和雷德納普·吉布森發現它的價值之前，人們更多的是把它看作一種工業廢料。大約七十年後，聚乙烯每年產量達到六千萬噸，不過目前它的產量正在下降，因爲其最終廢棄物需要深埋地下，數百年無法降解。
DDT — C14H9Cl5
In the 1950s and 1960s, DDT was used to eliminate malaria from Europe and North America in a program that, according to the World Health Organisation, saved an estimated 25 million lives. However, as early as the 1940s scientists had begun expressing concern over hazards associated with the use of DDT, and extensive research has since implicated the organ chlorine insecticide in the poisoning of humans, animals and the environment. As a result, its use has been banned or restricted in many countries.
滴滴涕（DDT）C14H9Cl5
1950和1960年代，歐洲以及北美把滴滴涕用於消滅瘧疾，距世界衛生組織估計，這至少拯救了兩千五百萬人的生命。然而，早在1940年代，科學家們就開始關注與滴滴涕打交道造成的危險，並廣泛研究了有機氯殺蟲劑被大量使用之後對人類、動物和環境造成的毒害。因此，許多國家已經禁止或限制使用這種物質。
MORPHINE — C17H19NO3
A potent painkiller, morphine was first isolated by German pharmacist Friedrich Sertürner in 1804. To this day, it remains the most important drug used to minimize suffering in terminally ill patients, particularly cancer sufferers. No other drug is as long-lasting and effective at managing severe pain. Despite this, 80 per cent of the world's population has access to just six per cent of the world's supply. Morphine is more widely distributed in the form of the illicit drug heroin, with an industry estimated at nearly A$100 billion annually.
嗎啡C17H19NO3
1804年，德國藥劑師弗里德里希·瑟託內爾首次分離出嗎啡——這種強效止痛藥。至今，它仍然是讓晚期病患者，特別是癌症患者減少痛苦的最有效藥物。目前還沒有其他藥物像它那樣持久有效的抑制劇痛。儘管如此，佔世界百分之八十的人口所能獲得的僅佔全球嗎啡供應的百分之六。它更多的是作爲非法毒品海洛因的有效成分出現，估計這一非法行業每年交易額達到一千億美元。
AMMONIA — NH3
In the early 20th century, the world's growing population couldn't find enough ammonia to fertilize all its crops. Due to the discovery of a technique to mass-produce ammonia, called the Haber process, an estimated two billion people are not starving today. We produce 100 million tones of ammonia for fertilizer each year, but it is also an important ingredient in explosives.
氨NH3
二十世紀初，世界人口不斷增長，但人們還沒有認識到足夠的氨可以讓耕地更加肥沃。由於一種被稱作哈伯制氨法的可以大規模製造氨的技術被發現，讓世界上二十億人口不再每天捱餓。如今每年我們生產一億噸氨用於製造肥料，此外，它還是炸藥的重要成分。 IRON — Fe
Iron accounts for at least 90 per cent of metal production. Without it we wouldn't have power lines or oil refineries. Iron is a key component of cars, trains, planes, ships, fridges, dishwashers and computers. As a chemical it's also used in insecticides, water purification, sewage treatment and the production of ammonia. Iron was first smelted 3,500 years ago, but it wasn't until English engineer Henry Bessemer's invention in 1856 of an inexpensive way to mass-produce steel from iron that its use skyrocketed. In 2007 alone, 1,900 million tones of iron ore were produced, with 98 per cent of that used to make steel.
鐵Fe
鋼鐵在金屬產量中至少佔到百分之九十份額。沒有它，我們就不會有各種電力線或煉油廠。鋼鐵是各類汽車、火車、飛機、輪船、冰箱、洗碗機以及計算機的主要組件。作爲一種化學原料，它也被用於製造殺蟲劑、提純水、淨化污水和制氨。鐵首次被使用已有三千五百年曆史，但直到1856年，英國工程師亨利·貝西默找到叢鐵中廉價提煉鋼材的方法，它才被大規模應用。僅2007年就有十九億噸鐵礦石被提煉，其中百分之九十八被用於鍊鋼。
ETHANOL — C2H6O
If your head is swimming, you're seeing double and suddenly finding everyone attractive, chances are that ethanol is to blame. Worldwide, about two billion people enjoy ethanol, the intoxicant in alcohol. The average Australian, for example, drinks about 10 L of pure alcohol each year. Historians suspect that it was accidentally discovered when our ancestors' grain stores were drenched with rain and fermented by the Sun. The liquor reduces inhibitions, alters moods, impairs judgment and boosts sexual desire. Alcohol consumption is the third largest risk factor for disease in developed countries.
乙醇C2H6O
如果你正感到頭暈，眼前出現重影，而且突然感覺每個人都那麼可親，這八成是乙醇的功勞。在全球範圍，大約有二十億人享用乙醇，這種可致醉的醇類化合物。例如，在澳大利亞，平均每人每年飲用十升純酒精。歷史學家們懷疑，由於我們的祖先存儲的穀物被雨淋溼後又被陽光發酵，因此偶然發現了這種物質。這種液體可以減少抑制，調節心境，影響判斷力，並增進性慾。酒精消費是發達國家第三大危險的致病因素。
SULPHURIC ACID — H2SO4
A country's production of sulphuric acid is a good indication of its industrial might, because at some stage nearly every manufactured good comes into contact with this highly corrosive stuff. It's used in mining, steel production, oil refining and chemical synthesis, and in the manufacture of fertilizers, detergents and plastics. No wonder it's nicknamed "the king of chemicals". Sulphuric acid was discovered in the 8th century, but it only became economically viable in 1746, when English chemist John Roebuck developed a way to produce it in bulk. In 2005 world production of sulphuric acid was estimated at 193 million tones.
硫酸H2SO4
一個國家的硫酸產能是其工業能力的良好指針，因爲在某些階段，幾乎各個製造行業都要用到這種高度腐蝕性的原材料。它被用於採礦、鍊鋼、石油精煉化工，以及製造化肥、洗滌劑和塑料。它的綽號“化學品之王”不容置疑。硫酸早在八世紀就被發現，但它真正用於經濟領域是在1746年，當時英國化學家約翰·羅巴克發現了一種批量製造它的方法。據估計，2005年全球硫酸產量達到一億九千三百萬噸。
PROGESTIN — C21H30O2
As the principal component of the pill, progestin allowed women to separate sex from procreation, giving them unprecedented freedom and control over their lives. First synthesized in 1951 by Austrian Carl Djerassi, progestin stops ovulation by imitating the hormone progesterone. Between 1965 and 1995 global fertility rates fell from 4.9 to 2.8 children per woman, largely due to the pill. Today, more than 70 million women around the world use this oral contraceptive.
孕酮C21H30O2
作爲一種小藥丸的主要成分，孕酮把婦女的性行爲從生育中解放出來，爲她們的生活帶來史無前例的自由。1951年，奧地利人卡爾·傑羅西首次合成了這種藥物，它通過模仿孕酮激素的作用制止卵子產生。1965年到1995年，全球每位婦女平均從生育4.9個胎兒降低至2.8個胎兒，這其中絕大多數功勞屬於這種小藥丸。如今，全球有超過七千萬婦女使用這種口服避孕藥。
CARBON DIOXIDE — CO2
Scottish chemist Joseph Black discovered and isolated this potent greenhouse gas in the 1750s. At that time, man-made CO2 emissions were about three million tones per year. But by 2005, emissions from fossil fuels alone were 7.9 billion tones, with another 1.5 billion tones caused by forest clearing. Carbon dioxide is the second most important greenhouse gas (after water vapor), trapping heat in our atmosphere and increasing global temperatures via the greenhouse effect. Emissions continue to climb, so unless there's a drastic turnaround, expect the sea level rises, extreme weather events and mass extinctions associated with a rapidly warming globe.
二氧化碳CO2
十八世紀五十年代，蘇格蘭化學家約瑟夫·布萊克發現並分離了這種強有力的溫室氣體。當時，人造二氧化碳排放每年約有三百萬噸。但到2005年，僅礦物質燃燒一項就造成七十九億噸二氧化碳被排放，另外森林砍伐也產生十五億噸。排在水蒸氣之後，二氧化碳是第二大重要的溫室氣體，它阻止我們的大氣散熱，並通過溫室效應增加全球溫度。目前其排放量還在上升，因此，除非有急劇轉變，否則迅速變暖的地球將遭遇海平面上升，極端氣候增加和大規模物種滅絕等一系列難題。
