If only life was as simple: The Periodic Table

Everything is interesting. If you explore it. By this reckoning everybody is interesting.

Nothing fascinates me more than science. To be more specific, the things that make up life. For example, the elements. Of course there is also the Mind. But truth  be told, if you can find the answer to one, you will find the answer for the other. Life is like that. But back to the topic under discussion...

The Periodic table is the creation of Mendeleev of Russia. We in school shortened it to Mendel! This was done 200 years back. (Not me in school!) For people involved with Chemistry and Physics, knowing the table is crucial. But it is important for others also to know that life is made of these elements. One interesting aspect of Mendeleev's table was that he used Sanskrit in numbering the table. But later day scientists decided on the present day table presentation. 

Why is it known as the Periodic Table? Because they are arranged in rows and columns - a tabular form and by their valency - that is atomic numbers. Periodically. (Imagine your class time table - periods), Primarily they are grouped together because they share similar properties.

Some of them are naturally occurring but others are highly irregular and have been processed. 

The most common element is oxygen but it is not at the top. The honour goes to Hydrogen which has only one electron!

It was the discovery of oxygen (and its properties) which resulted in the discovery of other elements.

Did you know that Pot Ash was ash that was collected in pots and it became a name in  itself. Potassium. The most commonly used element in fertilisers. And no. It does not have the privilege of having P as its chemical symbol. It is known as K. P is Phosphorus. 

The last element in the table has the atomic number of 118. According to some scientists, we will never go higher than 138. But nature is unpredictable and so all we can do is wait and see.  

The first compound to be discovered was carbon dioxide by a priest called Priestley. (what else!) He also discovered oxygen but Lavoisier from France was the one who put it in a format that was more recognized. (By the way carbonated drinks have carbon dioxide and hence the name!) 

Marie Curie,  who discovered Polonium, chose the name to honour her country of birth. Poland.  

Another element with the name of a country is Germanium. Of course, there are many with city names.

Imagine, just 400 years ago we did not know about the elements. For many fire was one of the elements. (Even today poetically it is one of the five elements. Go guess the others!)  

While the original table by Mendeleev did not contain the 118 names we see today...(The latest one was discovered in 2015!) he did know that the rest would be discovered in time.

My point is writing about this table is the the presence of these elements in nature which includes space. (off Earth!)

If there is reason and logic to life on earth, then there must be reason for life. Confounding! Everything in life has a reason. So it falls on us to face the truth. There is much we don't know.

By the next 400, nay 100 years, we will know much more. Will it bring us closer to the truth?

For more information: https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ptable/