The Disappearing Spoon Ch. 14

Summary

Money has been both an impulse for the discovering of new part of science, and also a burden since only the rich could afford to do the experiments and research. Many elements that form part or are similar to other elements, have very significant names and even the noble gases have names referring to their inactivity. While in school, the author mentions a German person who was incharge of the supply room and after one semester began to talk to him and learned about Goethe. To which his book was read for literature and not for scientific accuracy.

Goethe had to chose a person to fill in a chair in chemistry at a university and chose Johann Wolfgang Dobereiner who had failed at many industries but had gained experience and great chemical topics to talk to Goethe. Dobereiner based his greatest contribution in Strontium. Strontium was a chemical mixture of calcium and barium. Strontium became the first element correctly placed on the periodic table. He made Goethe look like a genius only for supporting him, when he invented the first portable lighter.

Typewriters were invented and succeeded due to Mark Twain’s interest on these modern writing materials. Robert Lowell’s relationship with Lithium, turned up to be devastating for the individual. Lowell was a bright writer, but he had mood depressions. Lithium only helps slow or stop the progress of bipolarity cases. Lithium indeed calmed Lowell down making him “healthier”, but his poetical art became less poetical and less musical as it once was.

Reflection

The chapter begins with a funny allusion to the origin of some of the element names. It is nice to see the way they are connected. I find it shocking that chemistry or better yet science, took a while to get mathematized. I, personally, love and enjoy mathematics and seeing that this subject had not formed part of science at some point, is sad, because math can be seen everywhere specially in the sciences of chemistry and physics. The author then begins to talk about his experiences in college and how he was scared of the German who was at the basement in charge of the connection cables. It is always entertaining how authors can sometimes tell anecdotes. Like Goethe’s example of chemical adultery. It was weird to know that strontium was one of the first lights to the periodic table, one would think that it was hydrogen, but it is all assembled by the atomic number rather than chronology of finding it. It is quite odd for me to see great figures of literature in a book that talks about science. Mark twain became part of this by the scientific discovery and economic triumph of typewriters.