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In 1913, British physicist Henry Moseley founded an elegant way for "counting" the elements predicated on atomic number, ranging them from hydrogen (#1) to uranium (#92). It soon became clear, however, that seven elements were mysteriously lacking from the fall into line - seven elements anonymous to research. In his well researched and engagingly narrative, Eric Scerri reveals the intriguing tales of the seven elements - protactinium, hafnium, rhenium, technetium, francium, astatine and promethium. The reserve comes after the historical order of breakthrough, roughly spanning the two world wars, beginning with the isolation of protactinium in 1917 and stopping get back of promethium in 1945. For every element, Scerri traces the research that preceded the breakthrough, the pivotal experiments, the personalities of the chemists engaged, the chemical character of the new element, and its applications in research and technology. We learn for occasion that alloys of hafnium - whose name derives from the Latin name for Copenhagen (hafnia) - have some of the highest boiling things on record and are used for the nozzles in rocket thrusters including the Apollo Lunar Modules. Scerri also explains to the personal stories of researchers conquering great hurdles. We see how Lise Meitner and Otto Hahn - the pair who later suggested the idea of atomic fission - were attempting to isolate element 91 when World Conflict I intervened, Hahn was drafted in to the German army's poison gas unit, and Meitner was pressured to press on only against daunting probabilities. The reserve concludes by analyzing how and where the 25 new elements have taken their places in the regular table in the last half century. A Story of Seven Elements paints a fascinating picture of substance research - the wrong turns, missed opportunities, bitterly disputed says, serendipitous studies, accusations of dishonesty - all leading finally to the excitement of discovery.
