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Recent items from Elemental
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Manganese - the 'essential' essential element
8:00 AM.The metal manganese is a vital part of photosynthesis and is found in aluminium drink cans, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 47 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Magnesium - loved by everyone and everything
8:00 AM.Magnesium is loved by plants, folk suffering constipation and boy-racers, as Allan Blackman reveals in ep 46 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Lutetium - an obscure Parisian
8:00 AM.After a fierce struggle for naming rights, the last lanthanoid element to be discovered was eventually named after Paris, says Allan Blackman in ep 45 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Lithium - a mood enhancing element
8:00 AM.Lithium is the lightest metal, and it is used in batteries and for the treatment of bipolar disorder, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 44 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Lead - sweet-tasting but deadly
8:00 AM.Lead is the element that took down an empire, and its sweet taste belies a metal that is dangerous for human & animal health. All this and more with Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 43 of Elemental.
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Lanthanum - curious case of a 'lost' element
8:00 AM.Despite giving its name to a whole group on the periodic table, chemists can't agree if lanthanum even belongs in that group, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 42 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Krypton - its name means 'hidden' but it's a real thing
8:00 AM.In real life krypton is a noble gas which is commonly used in neon signs and laser light shows, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 41 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Iron - creator of the modern world
8:00 AM.Iron is formed in stars, makes up most of the Earth's core & as a result enables life as we know it to exist, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT, in ep 40 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Iridium and the end of the dinosaurs
8:00 AM.Iridium is the second-densest element on the periodic table and the most erosion-resistant metal. A layer of iridium in rocks marks the demise of the dinosaurs, according to Allan Blackman from AUT… Read more Audio
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Iodine - a vital trace element
8:00 AM.A lack of iodine causes goitre, and seafood and iodised salt are good sources of this important trace element, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT, in ep 38 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Indium - Queen of the touchscreen
8:00 AM.Indium is a very soft metal, and as indium-tin-oxide it is an indispensable part of the swipeability of touchscreens, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 37 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Hydrogen - 'number 1 in the Universe'
8:00 AM.Hydrogen is the first element on the periodic table. It is the oldest, lightest and most abundant element in the universe, but on earth it is usually found in compounds such as water, says AUT's Allan… Read more Audio
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Holmium - obscure, but an important surgical laser
8:00 AM.Holmium has interesting magnetic properties and is an important part of precise surgical lasers known as the 'Swiss Army knife' of lasers, according to Prof Allan Backman from AUT, in ep 35 of… Read more Audio
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Helium - rare on earth but universally abundant
8:00 AM.Helium is the second most abundant element in the universe and possibly the most unreactive element on the periodic table, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT, in ep 34 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Hafnium - helped land the first astronauts on the moon
8:00 AM.Hafnium is named after Copenhagen and as it has a very high melting point it was used in the thruster nozzles of the Apollo Lunar modules, according to Elemental's Allan Blackman from AUT. Read more Audio
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Gold - a most desirable noble metal
8:00 AM.Gold is highly valued for its colour as well as for being malleable and ductile, and as a noble metal it is unreactive and doesn't rust, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 32 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Germanium - important in the first transistors
8:00 AM.Germanium is a metalloid that was a key element in early transistors and is now used in optical fibres and infrared night vision scopes, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 31 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Gallium - mysterious case of the disappearing spoon
8:00 AM.Gallium is the second element named after France, is a key element in mobile phones & Blu-ray players & melts at body temperature, says Prof Allan Blackman in ep 30 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Gadolinium - plays a key role in MRI scans
8:00 AM.Gadolinium has interesting magnetic properties and is used as a contrast agent in MRI scans, according to AUT's Prof Allan Blackman in ep 29 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Francium - final naturally-occurring element to be discovered
8:00 AM.Francium was the last naturally-occurring element to be discovered and has never been seen, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 28 Elemental. Read more Audio
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Fluorine - the non-stick element
8:00 AM.Fluorine is a highly toxic green gas that is the main ingredient in non-stick teflon coatings. In ep 27 of Elemental, Prof Allan Blackman from AUT, says that fluorine has very different properties… Read more Audio
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Europium - putting the security in the Euro
8:00 AM.Europium is named after Europe and is responsible for a forgery-busting aspect of the Euro banknote, reports Prof Allan Blackman in ep 26 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Erbium - through rose-tinted glasses
8:00 AM.Erbium is named after a chemically famous Swedish village, and adds a rose-tinted glow to the periodic table, in ep 25 of Elemental with Allan Blackman from AUT. Read more Audio
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Dysprosium - hard to get
8:00 AM.Dysprosium earned its name by being very hard to separate from other elements and has become very important in electric car motors. Join Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 24 of Elemental. Read more Audio
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Curium & meitnerium - in honour of two pioneering women
8:00 AM.There are only two chemical elements on the periodic table named after women: curium, in honour of Marie & Pierre Curie, & meitnerium after Lise Meitner. Allan Blackman from AUT introduces the women… Read more Audio