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Category: Chemistry

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Happy 150th Anniversary to the Periodic Table

Posted by: Ellen Terrell

This post was written by Science Reference Specialist Nate Smith. This year marks the 150th anniversary of one of the most important breakthroughs in the field of chemistry: the Periodic Table of Elements.  While there have been over 700 distinct iterations of the table (Scerri, 20), the first tables that explicitly showed periodicity were created …

Monkey Skin, Elephant’s Breath, and Kitten’s Ear: History of Color Naming

Posted by: Jennifer Harbster

There is scarcely any subject that has so many practical and scientific aspects as the subject of color (Henry LeFavour, Elementary Color, 1895:p1) There are many ways to study color*. We can trace the history of color pigments, the development of color chemistry, the effect of color on our psyche, and the perception of color. …