This is an I-Heart podcast.

This is our American stories, and we tell stories about everything here on this show,

and our favorite stories about our past history stories.

Our next comes to us from a man who's simply known as the History Guy.

His videos are watched by hundreds of thousands of people of all ages on YouTube.

The History Guy is also heard here on our American stories.

Today, we know asbestos to be a health hazard,

but the natural mineral was not simply an artifact of the industrial age.

Here's the history guy telling us the story of asbestos.

Today, asbestos is pretty much singularly known as something dangerous that used to be used in building

materials. Billions of dollars are spent in asbestos abatement and ads play on television

offering legal help to people who have been exposed to asbestos. If you have an older home, you

might worry about whether there's asbestos in your home. Asbestos became so popular and used during

the industrial era that we sometimes forget

that it's not a new invention. It's a naturally occurring mineral, and one that has a surprisingly

long history with humanity. Asbestos has been used in production for at least 4,000 years, and before

it became known as a notorious killer killer it had a very different reputation.

The surprisingly long human relationship with asbestos is history that deserves to be remembered.

Asbestos is an umbrella term that refers to six different naturally occurring silicate minerals composed of thin fibrous crystals.

The fibers are made up of even smaller pieces called fibrils, which can be as small as a single micron in length.

The most commonly used type is called chrysolite, or white asbestos, which makes up about 95% of the asbestos in most products, but a number of other kinds are recognized, including brown and blue asbestos.

It functions naturally as an electric insulator, it is highly resistant to heat. It's chemically inert, and it strengthens other materials when mixed.

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