The Atmospheric Assassin

"The Atmospheric Assassin – The inventor who accidentally poisoned the entire planet" tells the biography of Thomas Midgley Jr., often cited as the single organism that had the most destructive impact on the atmosphere in Earth's history. A brilliant chemist for General Motors, Midgley solved the problem of engine "knocking" by adding lead to gasoline. Despite knowing it was toxic (he poisoned himself during demos), he pushed it into the global market. Author Oliver Haze recounts how Midgley later tried to solve the problem of dangerous refrigerants and invented Freon (CFCs)—the very gas that tore a hole in the ozone layer. The book culminates in his tragic, ironic death: paralyzed by polio, he invented a pulley system to lift himself out of bed, which eventually entangled and strangled him. "The Atmospheric Assassin" is a grim study of short-term solutions causing long-term catastrophes. It explores the hubris of industrial chemistry and the decades-long fight to remove lead from the environment.