Party In A Test Tube: Chemistry Parties Are So Reactive

When I was a kid, I wanted a chemistry set. Didn’t we all? Why did I want a chemistry set? It’s not because I wanted to sit placidly in my bedroom, creating new experiments that would change the world and lead to universal peace and harmony. No, I wanted to blow stuff up, just like you did.

Imagine my disappointment when my chemistry set failed to cause any explosions at all, not even a little tiny one. Apparently they design those things to be safe. Bah! Who wants safety when you’re an explosion-hungry nine-year-old?

Now, imagine my delight in high school chemistry when we were finally given a bit of potassium and some water. The flames! The motion! But still there was no major explosion. Oh well, it was probably for the best. The lab equipment was likely too expensive to blow up every other week.

Unfortunately, aside from the delights of a few minor explosions, I seem to remember that chemistry involved a lot of balancing equations. That’s all well and good, but it really took the groove off of my delight in chemistry. I wanted to know what things did when I put them together. I wanted to experiment. I wanted a party in a test tube.

And so it was that when I stumbled across this video some time ago, I knew that I’d met my party – a chemistry party. This video plays on my penchant for interpretive dance and my delight in chemical experiments, all at the same time. That, my friends, is just stunning.

For all of you chemistry geeks, this one’s for you. And for all those who have unpleasant flashbacks from the chemistry lab, the place of great unpleasant memorization of chemical relationships, this one’s for you too. Who says scientists (and chemicals) don’t know how to party? Except for the noble gases, of course…

Image Credits: [Job Costumes] [Tiptop Development]