Part 1 of 5 · freeIntroduction
A smartphone looks like a single object. In fact it is an assembly of dozens of materials from all over the world, far beyond the visible glass, plastic and metal. According to the European Commission, a phone can contain up to 50 different metals. The US Geological Survey estimates that at least half of the components in a mobile device come from minerals mined from the ground or processed from them.
Why does such a small object need so many different materials? Because each part demands a specific property: carrying electricity, staying transparent, behaving like a magnet or storing energy. In other words, much of your phone begins its life as rock dug from the ground.
The rest is in the Sophia app.The remaining parts, the open-book quiz and the full glossary. Free to start; Premium unlocks everything.
- 2Even the glass has a job
- 3Every material has a job
- 4A phone that has traveled the world
- 5An old phone is still precious
Open-book quiz8 questions whose answers are in the text.
Glossary7 terms explained in a tap.
30 languagesThe same course, from French to Japanese.
