The Periodic Table has 118 legs
By Warner M.Montgomery warner@thecolumbiastar.com

Dr. Robert L. Beamer and the Periodic Table

Beamer's his name, chemistry's his game.

Dr. Robert L. Beamer, formerly of the University of South Carolina, spoke to the Torch Club of Columbia April 22 on "The Origin and Significance of the Periodic Table."

The Periodic Table, as Beamer pointed out, is a grouping of the 118 elements (as of last week) by their basic qualities: electropositive vs. electronegative, metals vs. non- metals, and reactive vs. inert. Of course, all science majors in the room understood completely, but liberal arts majors stared into their pudding wondering if it were a metal or not.

As Beamer made his way along the table, molecules, chemical formulas, and mathematical terms flew out of his mouth. Philosophers in the audience were saddened to hear that the Greek version of only four elements (earth, water, air, and fire) was out of date. Ministers were disturbed to learn that the Greeks discovered infinity. The lawyers reached for their Blackberries at the mention of alchemy, having always wanted an easy way to turn things into gold.

Atomic weights, isotopes, orbitals, and isosteres became useful terms as Beamer explained how Lothar Meyer, a German, and Dimitri Mendeleev, a Russian, used them to independently "discover" the periodic law which allows the periodic table to be built. Both had worked with Robert Bunsen, a German who invented the Bunsen burner. Meyer died in 1895, probably of chemical poisoning. Twelve years later, Mendeleev died of the flu.

The Torch Club of Columbia meets monthly for dinner and a challenging talk. For information, contact Ed Latimer at 803- 776-4765.