Seeker+'s video: The Science of Breaking Bad

In this latest episode, we dive into the world of Breaking Bad with Phil Cook and Matthew Broussard, where we discuss the science behind the show. » Subscribe to Seeker+! https://bit.ly/SeekerPlusSubscribe (then hit the little 🔔 icon and select “all.“) » Watch more! http://bit.ly/SeekerPlusPlaylist » Visit our shop at http://shop.seeker.com Each week we pair a comedian with a scientist, to break down the scientifically inaccurate elements of popular movies and TV shows. Warning: There will be spoilers! In the show, Walt uses red Phosphorus in that very first episode as a reducing agent. You could also use iodine. He also uses the red Phosphorus to poison the gangsters that are threatening him. This is kind of a kinda situation because phosphorus will react with hot water to make something called phosphine. And phosphine is really, really toxic. You don't need much in the air at all. It's a very strong nerve agent, causes respiratory issues, causes severe skin and subcutaneous kind of irritation. The problem is it's the white phosphorus form that's the most reactive. And if you watched the episode, he tosses it into the boiling water and then like immediately everyone is overcome by these fumes of phosphine. There's a little bit of artistic liberty there that was taken, which is fine because it will react. Phosphorus will react to make phosphine. But the white Phosphorus form reacts most rapidly. The red Phosphorus form, you'd have to let it cook for a while to really build up those toxic levels. The other thing that happens with phosphine gases, there's a side reaction where you create diphosphine and phosphine. When they get in the air in a concentrated enough amount, they become pyrophoric, which means as soon as they come in contact with oxygen in the air, they burst into flames. They kind of auto ignite. So you can imagine this situation where he's got this kind of frying pan with some water that he pours into it. And then he throws in the red phosphorus from match heads. In reality, it would have burst into flames if that reaction was happening at a fast enough rate because of the byproducts that you would make in addition to the phosphine gas. -- Seeker empowers the curious to understand the science shaping our world. We tell award-winning stories about the natural forces and groundbreaking innovations that impact our lives, our planet, and our universe. Follow us on TikTok: tiktok.com/@seeker Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/seeker/ Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/seeker