Tuesday, September 23, 2014

The Scottish independence referendum (2014) might well have gone the other way

From the perspective someone with a 50 percent British, 25 percent Irish and 25 percent Scottish bloodline, living half a world away Down Under in the antipodes, and still trying to understand the history and culture of those sceptered isles ...

Do the Brits really understand the Scots? ... Probably not, as this video makes clear.

If the video had been broadcast on Scottish TV even a few times in the lead-up to the referendum, it's quite possible that the vote would have gone the other way!

Tuesday, September 02, 2014

This interactive Periodic Table makes learning Chemistry fun

During the 1960s I practiced analytical chemistry then taught chemistry, mathematics and general science at high schools (in the sate of Victoria, Australia).

I left teaching when I joined IBM in 1970, but am still interested in all things scientific even to this day. I’ve decided that I’m going to try getting my three young grandsons interested too, hoping that at least one of them will follow in grandpa’s footsteps!

I decided to write this brief post as soon as I came across an excellent little website devoted to displaying the Periodic Table of the chemical elements in an novel way.

The Dynamic Periodic Table is an interactive web-based joy to use -- but I will admit that you have to be that way inclined!

(click for a larger image)image

This periodic table was created by Michael Dayah.  Read all about it here.

Michael explains that it’s a true web application, uses only HTML (no images or Flash), and accesses multiple resources (such as Wikipedia) to conglomerate information about the individual elements, tablet friendly, usable offline, kept up to date with newly-discovered elements and other information, and more.

Highly recommended for chemistry buffs!

I heartily recommend that you have a play with it too, then be sure to pass the link on to all the young people that you know.