The Alchemy of Us: How Humans and Matter Transformed One Another

In the Epilogue, Ramirez explains how two quotes by Nobel laureate Toni Morrison influenced The Alchemy of Us. The first was the catalyst for the book: “If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, you must be the one to write it” (219). Ramirez heeded Morrison’s words when the opportunity arose to write a book about science and technology. Most science books focus on well-known inventors, all of whom are white men. By contrast, Ramirez took a more inclusive approach by writing about the contributions of Black people, women, and lesser-known inventors—and telling their personal stories.

After finishing her first draft, Ramirez came across a second Morrison quote, which challenged academics “to re-read traditional texts of a discipline with a fresh point of view” to uncover “more rather than less power, more rather than less beauty, more rather than less intellectual vigor—and subtlety” (220). This quote resonated with Ramirez, and she became even more committed to inclusivity. Science and technology are not just for a learned few or for men of European descent. Innovation is universal. Stories about science and technology must reflect that “everyone has an admission ticket to create” and “everyone must also critically critique their creations” (222). Ramirez’s goal is to make science as broadly accessible as possible: “I made the conscious decision to sacrifice the amount of technical and scholarly content, which might be understood by the few, and opted instead to tell human stories, which can be readily absorbed by the many” (220).