Dr. Eric Scerri, noted scientist and author of the book, “The Periodic Table: Its Story and Its Significance,” and many others, delivers a fascinating overview of the origin and importance of the periodic table.

Dr. Scerri is an experienced scientist who has logged many years in the field of chemistry. His formal education was primarily with the Universities of London, Cambridge, and Southampton.

Interested in sharing his love of science with hungry young minds, Dr. Scerri spent a decade teaching chemistry at various private colleges in the London area. Dr. Scerri completed postdoctoral fellowships with the London School of Economics and Caltech then went on to teach again at Purdue University and Bradley University, eventually landing at UCLA in 2000.

The science expert talks about his background and how he became interested in the periodic table in his early childhood years.

He recounts how the periodic table truly encompasses all the stuff from which everything is made. No other science has anything quite like it, which is remarkable and makes the periodic table that much more intriguing scientifically. He talks in depth about some of the more obscure elements and where they exist or might exist, in the universe. And he provides detailed information about the life of elements and their half-lives.

The chemist talks about the origin of the periodic table, as well as the discovery of the atom, etc. He explains many surprising insights that he has encountered in relation to the early equations that explained the complexity of the atom. He goes into detail about various equations from the pioneers of quantum mechanics that set out to explain the periodic table.

Dr. Scerri goes on to explain how superficial behavior can be misleading, and that deeper examination is required to fully explain and classify elements within scientific study. He talks about how every object is quantum mechanical, and that quantum mechanics is the more fundamental theory. Dr. Scerri discusses the various areas of his study and recounts some of the commonly asked questions he has fielded over the years in the many and various interviews he has taken part in.

Additionally, the science author explains how there is a fundamental unity of everything, and how this concept is often lacking in western philosophy and literature. He talks in detail about how science is, in fact, one unifying area, and that the individuals are less important than the overall advancement of science.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed