Boron
Boron is the mineral from the Wild West that stops glass from shattering and stops bullets in their tracks.
Boron is the mineral from the Wild West that stops glass from shattering and stops bullets in their tracks. Presenter Laurence Knight visits the Dixon Glass works to see why borosilicate glass is perfect for making chemistry equipment and much of the glassware we use in our day-to-day lives. Professor Andrea Sella demonstrates how this element puts the flub into flubber. Colin Roberson, founder of body armour firm Advanced Defence Materials, explains why being shot is like standing at the bottom of a volcano. And the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ's Kim Gittleson travels to the deserts of California where the modern-day story of boron first began.
Last on
Broadcasts
- Sat 21 Nov 2015 22:32GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service except West and Central Africa
- Sun 22 Nov 2015 05:06GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service
- Sun 22 Nov 2015 11:06GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service Australasia
- Sun 22 Nov 2015 14:06GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service West and Central Africa & East and Southern Africa only
- Mon 23 Nov 2015 01:32GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service
Podcast
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Elements
Chemical elements: where do we get them and how do they fit into our economy?