7th July 2020
Facts about metals I didn’t know.
Gold is one of the rarest materials on Earth and comes from meteorites.
But let’s take a step back. Gold is created when Neutron stars collide and then flung out into the rest of the Universe. The theory goes that when the Big Bang happened, only Hydrogen, Helium and Lithium were created. The heavier elements came from these dying stars when they threw out a range of elements including Gold as almost a dust. Gravitational forces then pulled together all the gases and dust to form them into the Sun, Planets, Asteroids etc. However Gold is rarely on the crust of the Earth. The reason being is that the Gold incorporated into the Earth on creation sunk deep into the liquid iron core which we cannot access. The Gold we mine has been deposited from a bombardment of the Earth up to c4bn years ago from Asteroids and Meteorites which were rich in metals. This drumming of the surface at the time not only added mass to the outer layer of the Earth but also added metals which are now just below the surface that is visible today and now mine. (Main article I read about this is courtesy of the FT).
The statue known as Eros in Piccadilly Circus in London is made partially of Aluminium. Aluminium was one of the most expensive materials in 1892 when the statue was erected (costing more than Gold) despite being the third most abundant metal in the Earths surface. Now given mining and smelting advances it is one of the cheapest metals to utilise.
The Eiffel Tower is six inches taller in the summer compared to its height during Winter because Steel and Iron expand in heat.
As an aside it’s curious to know that the Eros statue I mentioned is not really of Eros. Officially it is called the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain and has a winged statue at the top which is actually of Anteros – the brother of Eros the Greek God. Who knew Eros had a brother? Anteros is the God of selfless love who also punishes people not interested in love or those who do not return another’s love. Like Eros, he was the son of Ares and Aphrodite and when you see pictures of Aphrodite with her scales of love, one of the figures on the scales is Eros and the other Anteros. Another story says that the brothers were inseparable because for love to be sustained it needs to be reciprocated. Surprising that the God who causes people to fall in love is more well known than the one who ‘celebrates’ love.
Curiosity and the rascal 