Chemistry: A Volatile History (a BBC Four Documentary)

As a Chemistry teacher, watching this narrative feels amazingly like watching a big-budget Hollywood film :) This superbly pieced-together documentary and Chemistry lesson in one show beautifully explains the progression of the human understanding of the elements. (If only my chemistry lessons were this good at school, all my students would have become scientists! LOL)

This three-part documentary, produced by BBC Four, features Jim Al-Khalili, a professor of Theoretical Physics, tracing the extraordinary story of how the elements were discovered and mapped. In the process, he uncovers tales of success and heartaches in the story of well-known chemists' battle to control the elements which, in many ways, have helped build our modern world.

Episode 1: Discovering the Elements

Episode 2: The Order of the Elements

Episode 3: The Power of the Elements

Episode 2 is particularly interesting for me since I am presently discussing the Periodic Table of the Elements in my classes.

Many thanks to AtheistMedia.com for uploading the complete set of the documentary on youtube.

Episode 2: The Order of the Elements Part 1

Episode 2: The Order of the Elements Part 2

Episode 2: The Order of the Elements Part 3

Episode 2: The Order of the Elements Part 4

Episode 2: The Order of the Elements Part 5

Episode 2: The Order of the Elements Part 6