The news broke that a railroad car, loaded with pure sodium, had just derailed and was spilling its contents. A television reporter called me for an explanation of why firefighters were not allowed to ...

In the wee hours of the late 17th century, Isaac Newton could be found locked up in his laboratory prodding the secrets of nature. Giant plumes of green smoke poured from cauldrons of all shapes and ...

Understanding how a small, gas-phase molecule containing an actinide atom reacts with other molecules helps us better understand the chemistry of heavy elements. These elements are often available in ...

The periodic table of chemical elements, often called the periodic table, organizes all discovered chemical elements in rows (called periods) and columns (called groups) according to increasing atomic ...

Eric Scerri's delightful "The Periodic Table: Its Story and Its Significance" follows the 1969 classic by J. W. Spronsen, "The Periodic System of Chemical Elements," but is a different treatment of ...

The periodic table has become an icon of science. Its rows and columns provide a tidy way of showcasing the elements — the ingredients that make up the universe. It seems obvious today, but it wasn’t ...

Move over Mendeleev, there’s a new periodic table in science. Unlike the original periodic table, which organized the chemical elements, the new periodic table organizes protein complexes, or more ...

The rare radioactive substance made its way from the United States to Russia on a commercial flight in June 2009. Customs officers balked at accepting the package, which was ensconced in lead ...