I think so, Brain … but wouldn’t the leftover lead styphnate be considered hazmat?
Tag Archives: Chemistry
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but ethanol is just water with some extra hydrogen and a small carbon footprint.
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but my I didn’t have the right chemistry with the audience, so my jokes about noble gasses got no reaction.
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but when I comment on chemistry, there’s always a reaction.
Turning It Up to 119
Chemistry World reports that a group of Japanese scientists will begin trying to synthesize element 119 in December.
In 2016, the Riken team, led by Kosuke Morita, was recognised by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry as the first to make element 113, nihonium, by bombarding bismuth with zinc ions. To reach 119, however, the team will bombard a curium target with a vanadium ion beam. The target has been supplied by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennessee, US, which previously collaborated as part of a US—Russian team under Yuri Oganessian to discover element 117, tennessine. For the 119 experiment, En’yo says two beam lines will run concurrently – Riken will start with a cyclotron beam while upgrading its linear accelerator, before continuing the search with both machines. ‘[They] will then run in parallel until the discovery is made,’ En’yo confirmed.
The team will also be attempting to synthesize element 120.
I’m so old that I remember when there were only four elements—earth, air, fire, and water. Life keeps becoming more complicated.
UPDATE—I notice that the scientists say that their search could take five years or so. Good. That means I won’t have to upgrade my shower curtain for a while.
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but does that take all the isotopes of strontium into account?
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but what would you use as a container for a universal solvent?
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but isn’t methyl ethyl ketone flammable?
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but it looks like poly(hexano-6-lactam).
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but what would we do with the leftover neon.
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but how much potassium perchlorate would be safe?
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … hydrogen peroxide?
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but what will we do with the leftover formaldehyde?
Elemental Progress
The International Union for Pure and Applied Chemistry has confirmed that the seventh row of the the periodic table is now completely occupied. Labs in Japan, Russia, and the United States have produced evidence of the synthesis of elements 113, 115, 117, and 118.
Tom Lehrer to the white courtesy phone, please.
UPDATE—The teams who discovered the elements will have the honor of naming them. My son suggests the following names: Earth, Air, Fire, and Water.
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but do covalent bonds pay a higher rate of return?
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but where do we find the element of Surprise on the periodic table?
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but wouldn’t free radicals revolutionize chemistry?
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but if those bears are polar, why don’t they dissolve in water?
Are You Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I think so, Brain … but if we aren’t part of the solution, are we the precipitate?