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Film summary
The story of Hennig Brand and how he discovered the element phosphorus by boiling buckets of urine. Discover why his experiments paved the way for the discovery of the modern chemical elements.Key facts
- Elements can be concealed in more complex materials.
- Hennig Brand identified phosphorus in 1669.
- Phosphorus was discovered by boiling urine.
- Phosphorus is in our bones, DNA, tissues, and blood.
Transcript
This is the story of how one of the biggest puzzles science has ever faced, was helped on its way by a pioneering experiment using 50 buckets of urine.
Hundreds of years ago, no one understood what the world around us was made from.
There were many ideas we now …
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