Radon - Periodic Table of Videos

Here is a new video from us about Radon, including a look at a historic letter and a German cloud chamber!

With thanks to the Royal Society and GSI.

For those with annotations, the caption at the end for Radon should clearly be Rn, not Ra - sorry!

Brady's other channels include:

[amandaharris]

"hee hee! I've made my competitor feel Love the professor!

[kapirock]

The enthusiasm of the professor is contagious and makes fell happy. Thanks for the joy you share with us when making this videos! All the best!!

[mechareaper]

I'm struggling as a chemistry student. I'm very bad at physical chemistry, but Professor Poliakoff inspires me, and his commentary reminds me of why I became fascinated by chemistry in the first place.

[garywilson]

The professor is such a kind, compassionate man. We need more intelligent, happy and empathetic people in the world.

[marclarell]

Interestingly, when looking closer at the V shapes, one of the lines is shifted a little bit to the side, showing that the second particle is coming off a certain timeframe later.

[KarbineKyle]

Awesome video! Also, a great demonstration of half-lives at the end with the cloud chamber from the thorium-232 decay series. The Rn-220 nuclide has a half-life of approximately 55 seconds, emitting an alpha particle, becoming Po-216, also emitting an alpha particle, which has a half-life of 0.1 seconds, so they decay almost at the same time, so it looks like 2 alpha particles at the exact same time. If you look closely, you can see some take slightly longer. That's why half-life is used. One nuclide might decay at a certain point in time,  while the other nuclide in a different point in time, even if the same parent nuclides are produced at the same time.

[oobermate]

The cloud chamber footage has a certain beauty to it that is very easy to get lost in.

[primaryodors]

The cloud chamber looks freaking amazing!

I think if one has an emotional response, it is a sign of caring a lot about the subject matter, which means the study is a passion and not just a job. I agree that lends itself much better to breakthroughs and such!

[kiwibeca]

New Zealander here. So, so proud of Lord Rutherford and his work. He graces our $100 note, his hometown of Nelson has a "Rutherford St" (As well as a "Trafalgar St"), he was named at number 1 on the list of top 100 NZers; (Suffragist, Kate Sheppard, who graces our $10 not was 2nd, and Sir Ed Hillary, who graces our $5 note was 3rd, and also named the most important living NZer - this was before he died in early 2008.) and you can still go and see the rooms where he did his undergraduate work at the old site of the University of Canterbury, which mercifully survived the 2010/2011 earthquakes. <3

[powereln]

"hee-hee" I idolized this man, guys :D

[Mikeanglo]

Always humbling to see that these genius chemists are just as petty and rude as the rest of us, especially when it comes to addressing their competition XD

[justauser]

If you want radon just attach a plastic bag to the end of the pipe coming out of my basement. I've unfortunately got an endless supply

[Tonjevic]

Gosh, that cloud chamber is incredible. I had always wanted to see video footage of one, and now that I've seen it, it's better than I ever imagined.

[bernardputersznit]

I just adore the cloud chamber demo - Thanks Professor!

[BGroothedde]

These videos never fail to fascinate me. Thanks Brady, thanks Professor!

[herrbrahms]

2:00 Professor, I have to quibble. If you place radium metal into water in order to collect helium and radon, what you collect instead is a much larger volume of hydrogen for a moment, before your apparatus risks an explosion that would send shards of glass and dissolved radioactive radium hydroxide everywhere.

I think perhaps a more docile dissolved salt like radium chloride would have been used instead.

[JonathanPurdy]

Sweet, I asked for this one a while back (not the only one probably). I was kinda hoping for more information on why there are adverts about having it in your home, but this is great. From what I gather, it's basically everywhere anyway and we shouldn't really worry too much about it. You guys are awesome. Keep it up.

[MilanMilan]

1:23 lol Polonium is shaped like Poland

[jshortee]

More on the cloud chamber please. That was incredible.

[bonearete]

it must be so entertaining to have the professor as a friend. ....every meeting will be like a science lesson. He must be the center of attraction all the time in certain circle. I can almost hear the words " He is soooo cute!