Chapter Two Hundred One: Caesar's Last Breath: Decoding the Secrets of the Air Around Us

I listened to Sam Kean's (nonfictional) account of air and gasses more generally, Caesar's Last Breath, on audio, and I found it to be a really interesting listen.  Kean includes plenty of real-life stories about various unusual people (usually, though not always, scientists) who have been involved with the study--or consequences--of gasses, including a man who lived on Mount Saint Helens and refused to evacuate before the eruption.  (They never found his body.)  There's plenty of actual science content, though, including clearly-explained information about the nature of various elements and molecules in their gaseous forms.  Mostly following a chronological sequence, Kean chronicles the various gasses that formed earth's previous atmospheres as well as exploring the gasses that comprise its current, life-enabling atmosphere.  He also includes events such as the discovery of oxygen (or, more properly, how humans finally figured out what oxygen is), the first hot air balloon flights, the career of a French performer known as the Fartomaniac, the fallout of atomic bombs and subsequent atomic bomb tests, and the purported Roswell flying saucer incident.  In the final chapter, Kean gets a bit fanciful, considering potential futures for our planet and how humans might respond to the atmospheric changes that result from human activity (climate change), but overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  The bonus PDF that comes with the audiobook version includes Kean's works cited and all of the numerous (black and white) illustrations from the printed book, which are definitely worth a look.  If you're looking for some quality science writing, definitely consider Caesar's Last Breath.