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Editorial Reviews
Where do nature s building blocks, called the elements, come from? They re the hidden ingredients of everything in our world, from the carbon in our bodies to the metals in our smartphones. Watch as David Pogue unlocks their secrets.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
48 of 54 people found the following review helpful
By Rebecca
Format:DVD
Although this program has a few moments that I might share with my students, the program would not be a good use of class time as a whole.
-The program wanders from topic to topic without clear organization.
-Some of the oversimplifications may conflict with concepts I am trying to teach. For example, the program refers to electron shells and illustrates these shells as complete or incomplete rings around nuclei. This might be confusing to students learning about orbitals.
-I would have preferred some topics, such as properties of various chemical families, be explored in more depth. Instead, too much time was spent on extraneous scenes (exercising to produce sweat, peeing to produce phosphorous, etc.).
To be fair, this program may not have been designed to teach.
There were some graphics, such as the recombination of atoms during the combustion of explosives, that were not bad.
As a side note, PBS has not posted my review, although reviews both newer and older than mine (5 stars, of course) have been posted. Take the PBS rankings with a grain of salt.
-The program wanders from topic to topic without clear organization.
-Some of the oversimplifications may conflict with concepts I am trying to teach. For example, the program refers to electron shells and illustrates these shells as complete or incomplete rings around nuclei. This might be confusing to students learning about orbitals.
-I would have preferred some topics, such as properties of various chemical families, be explored in more depth. Instead, too much time was spent on extraneous scenes (exercising to produce sweat, peeing to produce phosphorous, etc.).
To be fair, this program may not have been designed to teach.
There were some graphics, such as the recombination of atoms during the combustion of explosives, that were not bad.
As a side note, PBS has not posted my review, although reviews both newer and older than mine (5 stars, of course) have been posted. Take the PBS rankings with a grain of salt.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
By Hunter
Format:DVD
This DVD was meant to be an overview of the peiodic table of elements with fun, historical, and scientific elements. It easily accomplished these goals. Some reviewers appear to expect or demand a complete or more thorough accounting of the elements. There are longer (e.g.20 segments or more) instructional videos that use to appear on PBS in times past. Howeever, PBS has shifted away from classroom style instructionals for several years now. This DVD had a segment on combustion as a redox reaction that I wish I had at the time I was taking classes in chemistry. I loved it and my 15 year old son (who is just beginning chemistry) loved it. We also loved the segment on the very recent discovery of the use of rare earth elements as a viable shark repellent (beieve it or not). The DVD inspired both my son and I to tackle more chemistry, which I believe is one of the goals of this DVD.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By Kaye Clanton
Format:DVD
What a wonderful NOVA program !! I asked that my Pre-AP/GT Physical Science students watch this episode and write a summary of the program. This program helped them deepen their understanding of the periodic table and the elements, which we are currently covering in our classes. All of the students reported enjoying the program. I recommend this program to other teachers of physical science, chemistry, and physics. I am pre-ordering the dvd so I can have it available for future students to see.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Discovering gold, copper, tin, sodium, chlorine, carbon, iron, hydrogen, silicon, oxygen, neodymium, uranium, seaborgium...
December 29, 2012
Format:DVD
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"Why do bombs go boom? How much gold is in 400 tons of dirt? And how come rare earths [or rare earth elements], the metals that make our gadgets go, aren't that rare at all?
We live in a world of incredible material variety. Yet everything we know: the stars, the planets, and life itself--comes from about 90 basic building blocks. All right here on this remarkable chart: the periodic table of the elements.
It's a story that begins with the Big Bang and eventually leads to us. And we're made almost entirely of just a handful of ingredients including one that burns secret fire inside us all.
Join me as I explore the basic building blocks of the universe. From some of the most common like oxygen to the least [common]: man-made elements that last only fractions of a second. Strange metals with repellent powers. Poisonous gases in stuff we eat every day. And now we can even see what they're made of.
If you're like me, you care about the elements and how they go together. Because more than ever MATTER MATTERS."
The above is what the narrator says in the preview of this remarkable film about the elements.
The narrator and host of this program is David Pogue, a New York Times tech correspondent. Due to his humour and inquisitiveness, he effectively brings, what can be a dry subject, to life.
As I said, this documentary is about the elements. What is an element? It is any substance that cannot be broken down or separated into different substances by ordinary chemical means. An element is a pure substance. Examples of elements are given in the title of this review.... Read more ›
"Why do bombs go boom? How much gold is in 400 tons of dirt? And how come rare earths [or rare earth elements], the metals that make our gadgets go, aren't that rare at all?
We live in a world of incredible material variety. Yet everything we know: the stars, the planets, and life itself--comes from about 90 basic building blocks. All right here on this remarkable chart: the periodic table of the elements.
It's a story that begins with the Big Bang and eventually leads to us. And we're made almost entirely of just a handful of ingredients including one that burns secret fire inside us all.
Join me as I explore the basic building blocks of the universe. From some of the most common like oxygen to the least [common]: man-made elements that last only fractions of a second. Strange metals with repellent powers. Poisonous gases in stuff we eat every day. And now we can even see what they're made of.
If you're like me, you care about the elements and how they go together. Because more than ever MATTER MATTERS."
The above is what the narrator says in the preview of this remarkable film about the elements.
The narrator and host of this program is David Pogue, a New York Times tech correspondent. Due to his humour and inquisitiveness, he effectively brings, what can be a dry subject, to life.
As I said, this documentary is about the elements. What is an element? It is any substance that cannot be broken down or separated into different substances by ordinary chemical means. An element is a pure substance. Examples of elements are given in the title of this review.... Read more ›
7 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By Marie Smith
Format:Blu-ray
Hunting the Elements was well received in our household. We watch NOVA regularly. Our 10 yr. old son watches NOVA and this is one of his favorite programs. David Pogue made us laugh many times but the program content was excellent. I think this program can help inspire kids to love Science, not dread it. Since watching this program several times, our son is now reading books on the Periodic Table, intro. physics, and chemistry. I think school children can benefit from watching programs like this one. Our nation is ranked behind so many other countries in Math & Science. We need to show citizens that Science is not a dry, intellectual subject but it can be exciting. "Creativity is intelligence at play"-Einstein. We look forward to seeing other NOVA programs that bring levity to science and inspire viewers. Well done!
10 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I saw this on PBS last night and was mesmerized. What a great program. Well produced, interesting, and fun. The host was great (very funny). It was so good I am ordering a copy and have recommended it to my friends.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
There are some inaccurate statements
I used this as an introduction to chemistry for my Physica, Science class. It is enteraining but the urine for P goes on too long. Read more
Published 1 month ago by sylvia thibault
5.0 out of 5 stars
As an instructional introduction
I am a 6th and 7th grade science teacher but taught high school sciences for 17 years prior to my current position. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Tea Cher
5.0 out of 5 stars
Entertaining and Educational
For someone who was/is absolutely hopeless at math and chemistry, this show parted many clouds for me. I wish I'd had this kind of introduction to chemistry back in highschool. Read more
Published 2 months ago by P. Miller
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic
Showing it as part of a chemistry class and the students are fascinated, as am I. I recommend to anyone remotely interested in science, chemistry in particular.
Published 3 months ago by hope blythe
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best Chemistry Video in Years!!
I teach high school chemistry and this type video is long overdue. The students love it! They were engaged the entire video. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Laurel Colatruglio
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must for chemistry teachers
This video hooked my kids immediately and held their attention. We spent 3 days watching it (spread over about a 2 week period) and the kids could tell me right where we were in... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Susie's mom
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great introduction
An entertaining introduction to elements and the periodic table.
The periodic table is covered pretty well, at an overview level. Not every element is covered of course. Read more
The periodic table is covered pretty well, at an overview level. Not every element is covered of course. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Learner
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great for High School Use
Chemistry documentaries of any kind are a rare thing, especially if you're teaching middle school or high school. Read more
Published 6 months ago by James Dauray
