Mercury

The intorduction of The Disappearing Spoon is all about the element mercury, and Sam Kean talks about how he first got interest in the periodic table when he was a child with strep throat. While he had a thermometer in his mouth, he talked and it fell out, the mercury spilling out all over. He became fascinated with it and how the molecules behaved. When in college, he continually had conversations with his professors, which is what was the most memorable to him. Once he learned more and more, he became even more fascinated with the periodic table and the different tales the elements tell. This is how the book starts out, and then it goes on to talk about each individual element and the tales they tell.