21: The Periodic Prophet

05/08/2022 25 min Episodio 21
21: The Periodic Prophet

Listen "21: The Periodic Prophet"

Episode Synopsis

We learn about the development of spectroscopy by Bunsen and Kirchhoff, and its ramifications, like remote sensing of materials--including heavenly bodies. We also learn about new elements discovered by spectroscopy, which boosted Mendeleev's periodic table and earned him accolades. Mendeleev, however, also predicted elements that don't exist, and failed to anticipate an entire classification of elements found in the 1890s by William Ramsey. Writer H.G. Wells even included one of these elements in a world-famous sci-fi novel.Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me at [email protected] Get my book, O Mg! How Chemistry Came to Be, from World Scientific Publishing, https://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/12670#t=aboutBook