Coming Soon
Hunting the Elements
A two-hour special from the producers of "Making Stuff" Airs April 4, 2012 on PBS
- Posted 08.25.11
- NOVA
Program Description
Where do nature’s building blocks, called the elements, come from? They’re the hidden ingredients of everything in our world, from the carbon in our bodies to the metals in our smartphones. To unlock their secrets, David Pogue, the lively host of NOVA’s popular "Making Stuff" series and technology correspondent of The New York Times, spins viewers through the world of weird, extreme chemistry: the strongest acids, the deadliest poisons, the universe’s most abundant elements, and the rarest of the rare—substances cooked up in atom smashers that flicker into existence for only fractions of a second.
Why are some elements like platinum or gold inert while others like phosphorus or potassium violently explosive? Why are some vital to every breath we take while others are lethal toxins that killed off their discoverers such as Marie Curie? As he digs for answers, Pogue reveals the story of the elements to be a rich stew simmering with passion, madness, and obsessive scientific rivalry. Punctuated by surprising and often alarming experiments, this program takes NOVA on a roller-coaster ride through nature’s hidden lab and the compelling stories of discovery that revealed its secrets.
Related Links
-
Making Stuff: Series Overview
David Pogue hosts a four-part special series exploring the materials that will shape our future.
-
It's Elemental
In this interactive periodic table, explore the elements and their properties and abundances.
-
An Elemental Quiz
Test your knowledge of chemistry basics and trivia.
-
Island of Stability: Expert Q&A
Heavy-element guru Ken Moody answers questions about the search for new elements to add to the periodic table.
