Stuck on a broken intercity bus, hoping the greyhound at the border will turn around as it often runs mostly empty. If not, three hour wait for another bolt bus. A little further and we could at least wait at the border.
So if anyone wants to ask me any questions about #chemistry #rpgs #canada #vancouver #science #crystallography or anything else, I'm bored and have time.
@kara Uranium
@Canageek rich and varied chemistry, indeed, in uranium. I still vote for thallium, one of the strangest elements
@Canageek have you worked extensively with uranium compounds?
@kara Daily, most of my work is on them
@DialMforMara @kara @Canageek large but very dense election cloud and very oxophillic. Also hard changing oxidation state.
@DialMforMara @Canageek my feel for the elements is more qualitative, cos I'm not strong at physical chemistry. thallium exhibits unusual chemistry for a post-transition metal; in its preferred +1 oxidation state it mimics the chemistry of alkali metals, e.g. in forming a soluble, strongly alkaline hydroxide (TlOH)
@kara @DialMforMara This is also how I interpret elements. We've done some thallium chem in our lab, but I wasn't the one to do it.
@DialMforMara @Canageek I haven't ever worked with thallium, though I wanted to once, for a peculiar reason: "electroless" plating of gold, i.e. depositing films of metallic gold from solutions of gold compounds treated with reducing agents, is apparently much aided by the addition of a tiny amount of thallium to the plating bath
@Canageek I'm going to bed, but I'm curious to hear if there are any good nerd conventions in vancouver that are positive spaces for trans folx
Good luck with your bus! Sparkle witch blessings! :sparkles: :bus:
@aprrrl I only know of one convention in Vancouver and it treats gaming as an afterthought, putting up its schedule less than a month before the event, so I've never gone. No idea how it treats anyone as a result.
@aprrrl There is also Vancouver Fan Expo, but given what Toronto Fan Expo pulled in 2010, I don't want to give them money https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2010/08/30/scifi_fans_fume_over_mismanaged_fan_expo.html
@Canageek "Fan Expo" as a phrase was a huge turnoff and yes, it turns out it's for-profit. so nope
@aprrrl I have no problem with for-profit. Gencon is for-profit and is probably the single best gaming con in the world
@Canageek I strongly prefer the community-organized cons
@aprrrl Those are mostly the ones I've been two, since they are small and local, but never have the sheer amount of STUFF that happens at the big cons. New games, ability to play stuff I've never played before, etc.
@aprrrl VCON sounds the best, http://vcon.ca/ and I would be going if I wasn't helping with a science show that weekend. However, they don't tell you what gaming will be happening NEXT WEEKEND http://vcon.ca/program/gaming/
@Canageek hmm. I would be interested but October is so full of cons and I can't really do more than two... or usually one...
@aprrrl What cons are you going to? I've been looking for good gaming cons to play some D&D or others at and not finding much other then these two.
@Canageek sorry, not in vancouver -- I've never been!
@Canageek What are your thoughts on rare earth elements
@And_Zoidberg Lanthanides? Like them. Doing my next research project on them.
@And_Zoidberg They are much better documented and understood then actinide chemistry, but still super cool. Very large, very oxophillic, and no oxidation chemistry to speak of.
@Canageek what's your favorite element :p