All set for chemistry

I bet you had a chemistry set as a child. Maybe you tinkered with a substantial rack of test-tubes containing compounds that would now be considered dangerous or daring: potassium permanganate, sodium thiocyanate, perhaps supplemented with stronger stuff bought at the chemical supplier’s or ‘borrowed’ from school: nitric acid, lumps of sodium under oil. Younger readers might have been denied such pleasures, having to be content with litmus paper for measuring soil pH. Today’s sets are likely to be more about ‘kitchen chemistry’ or ‘colour chemistry’, using nothing more hazardous than bicarb and food dyes.

The content, appearance and aspirations of your chemistry set age you as much as your choice in music.

Philip Ball explores the changes to chemistry sets throughout the years. This article provides a link to the article by Chemistry World.