Seeker+'s video: How A Crazy Laboratory Accident Helped Create Plastic

Episode 1 of 3 Check us out on Soundcloud! https://soundcloud.com/dnewsplus Please Subscribe! http://bit.ly/28iQhYC Discovery GO - http://smart.link/57ae195b47796 Science GO - http://smart.link/57ae1a34dd168 Check out The Great Courses: Sign up today and get a Free Month of unlimited access to all of The Great Courses Plus lectures. Go to - http://thegreatcoursesplus.com/dnewsplus We see plastic everywhere, but what exactly IS plastic and where did it come from? Turns out it was actually an accident in a lab or two. + + + + + + + + Previous Series: Have We Already Time Traveled?: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwwOk5fvpuuLjvSo2HelohJQMXaltMFGg + + + + + + + + The Basics of Plastic Manufacturing: https://plastics.americanchemistry.com/How-Plastics-Are-Made/ "The term "plastics" includes materials composed of various elements such as carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, chlorine, and sulfur. Plastics typically have high molecular weight, meaning each molecule can have thousands of atoms bound together." What's a monomer?: http://science.howstuffworks.com/monomer.htm "To understand a monomer, picture a set of beads made for a very young child, designed to interlock together. Each individual bead is an item on its own, but it can also snap tightly together with another bead, forming something entirely different." What is Plastic?: http://quatr.us/chemistry/plastic/ "There are thousands of different kinds of plastic, from shopping bags to Fisher-Price toys to photographic film, CD's, and plumbing pipes. Some plastics, like chewing gum or rubber, grow as part of plants, but people make most of the different kinds of plastic. We call them "plastics" because they are plastic, which means easy to bend or mold into different shapes." thermoplastic: http://www.dictionary.com/browse/thermoplastic "adjective 1.soft and pliable when heated, as some plastics, without any change of the inherent properties." Plastic: https://www.britannica.com/science/plastic "Plastic, polymeric material that has the capability of being molded or shaped, usually by the application of heat and pressure. This property of plasticity, often found in combination with other special properties such as low density, low electrical conductivity, transparency, and toughness, allows plastics to be made into a great variety of products." A brief history of plastics, natural and synthetic: http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-27442625 "When you think of plastic, what springs to mind? Cheap toys from China? Packaging? Or maybe a plastic bag? Of course you would. But how about a woolly jumper? Or cornflakes? Or an antique oak wardrobe?" How Plastics Work: http://science.howstuffworks.com/plastic1.htm "Before the invention of plastic, the only substances that could be molded were clays (pottery) and glass. Hardened clay and glass were used for storage, but they were heavy and brittle. Some natural substances, like tree gums and rubber, were sticky and moldable. Rubber wasn't very useful for storage because it eventually lost its ability to bounce back into shape and became sticky when heated." The Different Types Of Plastics And Their Classifications: https://www.qualitylogoproducts.com/lib/different-types-of-plastic.htm "Plastic is an essential component of numerous consumer products, including water bottles and product containers. However, not every kind of plastic is the same. In 1988, the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) established a classification system to help consumers and recyclers properly recycle and dispose of each different type based on its chemical makeup." + + + + + + + + DNews Plus is built for enthusiastic science fans seeking out comprehensive conversations on the geeky topics they love. Host Trace Dominguez digs beyond the usual scope to deliver details, developments and opinions on advanced topics like AI, string theory and Mars exploration. DNews Plus is also offered as an audio podcast on Soundcloud. + + + + + + + + Trace Dominguez on Twitter https://twitter.com/TraceDominguez DNews on Facebook https://facebook.com/discoverynews DNews on Twitter http://twitter.com/DNews + + + + + + + +