Materials are probably more deep-seated in our culture than most of us realize. Transportation,
housing, clothing, communication, recreation, and food productionvirtually every segment of
our everyday lives is influenced to one degree or another by materials. Historically, the
development and advancement of societies have been intimately tied to the members ability to
produce and manipulate materials to fill their needs. In fact, early civilizations have been
designated by the level of their materials development (Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age).
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
It was not until relatively recent times that
scientists came to understand the
relationships between the structural elements
of materials and their properties. This
knowledge, acquired over approximately the
past 100 years, has empowered them to
fashion, to a large degree, the characteristics
of materials.
The development of many technologies that
make our existence so comfortable has been
intimately associated with the accessibility
of suitable materials. An advancement in the
understanding of a material type is often the
forerunner to the stepwise progression of a
technology.
CLASSIFICATION OF MATERIALS
Solid materials have been conveniently
grouped into three basic classifications:
metals, ceramics, and polymers.This scheme
is based primarily on chemical makeup and
atomic structure, and most materials fall into
one distinct grouping or another, although
ADVANCED MATERIALS
Materials that are utilized in hightechnology (or high-tech) applications are
sometimes termed advanced materials. By
Smart Materials
Nanostructured Materials
REFERENCES
Eddy, Matthew Daniel (2008). The
Language of Mineralogy: John Walker,
Chemistry and the Edinburgh Medical
School 1750-1800. Ashgate.
"For Authors: Nature Materials"
Callister, Jr., Rethwisch. "Materials
Science and Engineering An
Introduction" (8th ed.). John Wiley and
Sons, 2009 p.5-6
Callister, Jr., Rethwisch. Materials
Science and Engineering An
Introduction (8th ed.). John Wiley and
Sons, 2009 p.10-12
Cristina Buzea, Ivan Pacheco, and
Kevin Robbie (2007). "Nanomaterials
and Nanoparticles: Sources and
Toxicity". Biointerphases 2 (4): MR17
MR71. doi:10.1116/1.2815690.
PMID 20419892.
A. Navrotsky (1998). "Energetics
and Crystal Chemical Systematics
among Ilmenite, Lithium Niobate, and
Perovskite Structures". Chem. Mater.
10 (10): 2787.
doi:10.1021/cm9801901.
Shelby, R. A.; Smith D.R.; Shultz S.;
Nemat-Nasser S.C. (2001). "Microwave
transmission through a twodimensional, isotropic, left-handed
metamaterial". Applied Physics Letters
78 (4): 489.
Bibcode:2001ApPhL..78..489S.
doi:10.1063/1.1343489
Smith, D. R.; Padilla, WJ; Vier, DC;
Nemat-Nasser, SC; Schultz, S (2000).
"Composite Medium with
Simultaneously Negative Permeability
and Permittivity". Physical Review
Letters 84 (18): 41847.
Bibcode:2000PhRvL..84.4184S.
doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.84.4184
(inactive 2014-04-15).
PMID 10990641.
"Sto AG, Cabot Create Aerogel
Insulation". Construction Digital. 15
November 2011. Retrieved 18
November 2011.
"Is graphene a miracle material?".
BBC Click. 21 May 2011. Retrieved 18
November 2011.