Archives for August, 2018
At 3,420oC, tungsten has the highest melting point of all metals. In fact, at that temperature most other metals have already vaporised. Its boiling point at around 5,700oC is the same temperature as the surface of the sun. Pure tungsten is quite workable, but it usually contains minor amounts of…
The alkali metals are the six elements that make up Group 1 of the periodic table, shown below. They are lithium (Li), sodium (Na), potassium (K), rubidium (Rb), cesium (Cs) and francium (Fr). They are called alkali metals because they all react, often violently, with water to form alkalis or…
In June Professor Peter Ridd was sacked by James Cook University, Queensland. His crime – telling the truth about the state of the Great Barrier Reef (“GBR”). The reason given was that he was guilty of “failing to act in a collegial way and in the academic spirit of the…