If you have lots of gold, have your food tested for arsenic.
Or don't put gold in your food?
Probably born with a golden spoon ;)
Why gold loves arsenic (2021)
21–28 of 28 posts
Re: Why gold loves arsenic (2021)
#22Genuine question for an outsider: would this imply that gold can be created? My memories from the last chemistry class I had, I clearly remember my teacher demonstrating philosopher stone ( aka changing materials in gold ) was feasible.
Gold is a chemical element, not an alloy or any kind of mixture of other things - so no, chemical reactions won't help you get gold.
Nuclear reactions WILL produce gold - in many ways actually (none profitable afaik):
- throw a neutron or 2 at neighboring elements, ensure they have the right energy for the cross section, hopefully with neutron capture and beta decay you get some gold (maybe the stable Au197 version, maybe a violently radioactive isotope though, I wouldn't wear a ring made of that. And it will eventually stop being gold when it decays). Oh an immense amount of radioactive byproducts. And the starting elements are often more expensive than gold itself.
- Fuse 2 lighter elements with just the right weights, you may get gold. But creating elements above iron is energy-negative so your fusion reaction will immediately die unless you can sustain it. All the gold we found on the planet was created during supernovas IIRC.
- Fission something heavier and hope that gold is one of the pieces you're left with.
- Start with an unstable isotope of Thallium, Bismuth, etc and hope for a few alpha decays to line up and get you gold.
There are actually quite a few paths.... and ALL the gold you'll ever see, whether artificial or "natural", was created with one or another (but most really is from supernovas). Remember, we started with only the building blocks in the big bang, mostly Hydrogen.
Re: Why gold loves arsenic (2021)
#23Having panned for gold in Gympie I was convinced I'd come home with a lot of pyrites and now 30 years later I feel I need to revisit that tiny jar of yellow dust. (Got a killer dose of sunburn just above the bum crack bending over in the stream with my pan, a reminder sunscreen has to go EVERYWHERE.)
Not everywhere, just everywhere the sun shines.
Re: Why gold loves arsenic (2021)
#24Having panned for gold in Gympie I was convinced I'd come home with a lot of pyrites and now 30 years later I feel I need to revisit that tiny jar of yellow dust. (Got a killer dose of sunburn just above the bum crack bending over in the stream with my pan, a reminder sunscreen has to go EVERYWHERE.)
TMI
Re: Why gold loves arsenic (2021)
#25Genuine question for an outsider: would this imply that gold can be created? My memories from the last chemistry class I had, I clearly remember my teacher demonstrating philosopher stone ( aka changing materials in gold ) was feasible.
Gold is a chemical element, not an alloy or any kind of mixture of other things - so no, chemical reactions won't help you get gold. Nuclear reactions WILL produce gold - in many ways actually (none profitable afaik): - throw a neutron or 2 at neighboring elements, ensure they have the right energy for the cross section, hopefully with neutron capture and beta decay you get some gold (maybe the stable Au197 version,…
Yeah it's always tickled me that we probably do have the technology to turn lead to gold, it would just be at an incredible loss. Almost fable-like that (one aspect of) what alchemists dedicated their whole lives to chasing is actually possible, just not actually worth it.
It's like if the federal government allowed you to print your own money but only if it was ones and it turned out that it cost $100/bill to do it properly.
Re: Why gold loves arsenic (2021)
#26quick search on "arsenic in water" yields endless
official governmental and other notices all over the world, so there does not apear to be a direct
asosiation between (recoverable) gold and arsenic
and that it is so prevelant that some humans have adapted and pass arsenic.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/centuries-poison-l...
Re: Why gold loves arsenic (2021)
#27Re: Why gold loves arsenic (2021)
#28Having panned for gold in Gympie I was convinced I'd come home with a lot of pyrites and now 30 years later I feel I need to revisit that tiny jar of yellow dust. (Got a killer dose of sunburn just above the bum crack bending over in the stream with my pan, a reminder sunscreen has to go EVERYWHERE.)
TMI
I found it a helpful tip quite honestly.