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Sunday, October 25, 2009

Fun Facts 10

Just one more set of facts after this one!
  • The radioactive element actinium (Ac, #89) really does glow in the dark!
  • Darmstadtium (Ds, #110) actually has a nickname. In Germany, where it was discovered, the emergency telephone number is 110 (not 911, as in the U.S.). Since Ds is element #110, it is sometimes jokingly called policium.
  • Sometimes people worry about getting too much sodium (Na, #11) in their diets. But some sodium is essential to good health, because it helps send signals through your nerves.
  • Rubies get their beautiful red color from chromium (Cr, #24).
  • Metal objects that are going to be used outdoors are often galvanized, or coated with zinc (Zn, #30), which does not rust.
  • Promethium (Pm, #61) has been detected in the stars of the Andromeda galaxy.
  • Many laundry bleaches contain chlorine (Cl, #17). These are the bleaches that cannot safely be used on colored fabrics.
  • Scientists have found rocks that contain a lot of manganese (Mn, #25) on the ocean floor. No one knows how they formed!
  • In the future, rubidium (Rb, #37) might be used to make a new type of battery.
  • Terbium (Tb, #65) is one of four elements that are named after the small town of Ytterby, Sweden. In the 1800's, rocks from that area were found to contain four unknown elements - ytterbium, yttrium, erbium, and terbium.

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