Radium is a radioactive element that was once used as a paint pigment for the numbers on clocks.  Radium was used because it glowed on account of its radioactivity, and folks could see the numbers on the clocks at night.  Unfortunately, the workers (mostly women) that painted these clocks tended to develop cancer.  […]

  Barium is what you do when somebody dies…get it?   next element                                         previous element

    Strontium is in the same chemical family as calcium and therefore it acts chemically similar to calcium.  When strontium is ingested, it replaces calcium in bone.  Strontium appears to impart more strength to bone than calcium, and intake of small amounts of strontium shows no known adverse health effects.  Therefore, some folks take […]

Calcium is found in bones, teeth and milk.  It is generally found in the form of hydroxyapatite, or Ca5(PO4)3(OH).  Calcium in the form of calcium carbonate, or CaCO3, is found in seashells.   next element                                        previous element

  Chlorophyll, the pigment that imparts a green color to plants, contains magnesium:  C55H72O5N4Mg next element                                previous element

Beryllium is found in emerald gemstones. Emeralds have the formula Be3Al2(SiO3)6 . The green color in emeralds comes from trace amounts of chromium or vanadium. next element                                           previous element