But when oxidation nibbles more slowly - more delicately, like a tortoise - at the world around us, without a flame, we call it rust and we sometimes scarcely notice as it goes about its business consuming everything from hairpins to whole civilizations.

Alan Bradley
About This Quote

The word oxidation comes from the Latin word “oxydare,” which means to combine. When oxygen combines with other elements, it forms compounds called oxides. When oxygen combines with iron, for example, the result is rust. Iron rusts when oxygen combines with its atoms and breaks them apart, forming a compound known as ferrous oxide.

Source: A Red Herring Without Mustard

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