The periodic table is pretty incredible, no? Such an elegant design principle, so orderly and logical, a true marvel. Its creator, Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev, was born on February 8, 1834. One wonders if Dmitri ever realized the legacy he was leaving for generations of science students, ever grateful for the veritable cheat sheet hanging on the wall of every chemistry classroom far and wide.Mendeleev arranged the known elements into columns based on their chemical properties and rows based on their atomic weights and based on his system, even predicted the properties of as-yet undiscovered elements. Quite impressive!
On Monday, Feb 8th, celebrate Dmitri 's 176th birthday by stopping by US Science 3, named for Mendeleev, to join in the trivia, treats, and for a rousing chorus of The Elements song!
Dmitri Mendeleev in 1897
photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons
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