Mercury: The Mysterious Mobile Metal

Neil Dickinson


Regions:
Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Essex, Hertfordshire
Notice Period:
Emergency (maybe less than one week's notice)
Type:
Hobby
Fee:
Paid: ca. £60 plus travel depending on distance
Category:
History
Updated:
2nd September 2024

Most of us are probably familiar with that funny, liquid metal mercury, perhaps from schooldays, but it would be unwise to spend much time in its company because it can be insidiously poisonous. Despite this, it and its compounds have had a wide range of uses. So where does it come from and what were those uses - or abuses? What is its connection with gold and can it be turned into gold like kings and alchemists hoped?

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About Neil Dickinson

My working life was spent as an industrial chemist and I have enjoyed a variety of other interests yet I’ve always been particularly fascinated by the ingenuity and brilliance of humans over history to develop resources and shape them to our own needs, be it for great good or to terrible ends, and sometimes for both, as accepted wisdom and circumstances have often changed over time. I present several illustrated talks on various topics with, when appropriate, a degree of humour attached. I always look forward to questions from my audience at the end of the talks which can reveal some fascinating further details and discussion.


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