Rumblings

Periodic Table of Elements

On this day in 1896 Swedish Chemist Alfred Nobel dies. In his honor, and as stipulated in his will, Nobel Prizes are awarded today (since 1901) in fields including physics, chemistry, medicine, literature and peace. It may seem ironic that a prize dedicated to peace should be founded by the man who created dynamite but it was precisely Nobel's unease with the military usage of his explosive inventions — he was condemned by a French newspaper as a "merchant of death" — that motivated him to establish the five prizes using interest from the invested capital of his formidable estate.

In other seismic news — on this date in 1966 the Beach Boys' song Good Vibrations tops the pop-singles charts in the United States.

This educational Periodic Table of Elements Infant/Toddler T-Shirt — discover the entire line here — is from the productive and versatile CafePress.com Plastic Earlobe shop. If you'd prefer a similar simple black and white Periodic Table in Lithuanian, they have that, too! Plastic Earlobe's wide array of offerings include some items for adult use only, just like dynamite.

[To purchase items click on the photograph or colored text links.]