Predicted by Mendeleev & useful for alloying with aluminium, scandium was involved in a famous cricket scandal, says AUT's Allan Blackman in ep 73 of Elemental.

Samarium magnets are used in headphones & guitar pickups, and samarium was the first element named after a real person, says Prof Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 72 of Elemental.

Ruthenium is a 'sort of' precious metal that is a useful catalyst and alloy. It is toxic and smells like ozone, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 71 of Elemental.

University of Otago psychology professor Ted Ruffman says ageing brains means older men become less able to recognise emotions in other people.

A psychology professor talks about men getting older & why they become less able to recognise other's emotions, and the element rubidium.

Rubidium is a reactive metal with few uses, named 'deepest red' due to its beautiful red spectral lines, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 70 of Elemental.

Rhodium is an expensive precious metal that is used in catalytic convertors, to make the Parkinson's drug L-DOPA, create shiny jewellery and add the menthol taste to toothpaste, says Allan Blackman from AUT in ep 69 of Elemental.

From cutting-edge genetic treatments to computer-brain interfaces that are still in the realm of science fiction, Silicon Valley is on a quest to let us live forever.

Peter Griffin investigates the ethics and possibilities around achieving immortality, and Allan Blackman looks at the chemical element radium.

Named after the Rhine river, rhenium is a metal with very high boiling and melting points, and it was the last naturally occuring, non-radioactive element to be discovered, says Prof Allan Blackman in ep 68 of Elemental.