Have you ever wondered why some elements in the periodic table do not have matching symbols? For instance, sodium is Na and potassium is K.
Click start to play today’s Crossword and identify all the chemical elements by their symbols.
The reason for this mismatch is because nearly all the elements in the table were known to people in ancient times, so they have retained their Latin names. What was known as natrium (Na) is now sodium; similarly, kalium (K) became potassium.
But chemistry is about much more than what we learn through the periodic table or in the classroom. It explains why the planet Mars appears red – it’s because it’s covered in iron oxide, the same compounds that give blood and rust their unique colour.
It also explains why diamonds, charcoal, and graphite (such as pencil lead) are essentially the same thing at their core – carbon. It’s just their form that’s different; they’re called allotropes of carbon.
This is why diamonds are not nearly as valuable as we think. According to Marketplace, a US-based nonprofit organisation that focuses on business and economics reports, if people try to re-sell a diamond to a jeweller, the average consumer typically receives only around 20 per cent of what they had originally paid.
But my friends, don't second-guess that rock on your finger or in your earrings. There’s no doubt diamonds are beautiful, and that's a good enough reason to value them! Many chemical reactions have an intrinsic beauty to them. Have you ever witnessed lightning streak across the night sky during a thunderstorm?
When lightning strikes, it cracks oxygen molecules in the atmosphere into radicals, which reform into ozone. Ozone then acts as a protective layer between the Earth and the ultraviolet rays of the sun. Sometimes, a good thunderstorm leaves a ‘clean’ smell in its wake – that is the sharp smell of ozone, which many people liken to the smell of chlorine!
The many mysteries of our world and the universe are unlocked with chemistry. Play today’s Crossword and learn all about the elements in the periodic table. Tell us if you enjoyed it at games@gulfnews.com.
