“Most people who have encountered mercury have done so after breaking a mercury thermometer. And many of us who saw the liquid balls of mercury scatter across a floor or countertop considered the element the most beautiful on the periodic table.”

American writer

Sam Kean is an American writer known for books that tell the story of scientific discoveries in a narrative style. He was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and lives in Washington, D.C. He has written for The New York Times Magazine, Mental Floss, Slate, Psychology Today, and The New Scientist. He has also published eight books, and they have been reviewed positively by The Wall Street Journal, Library Journal, and The New York Times.