Where do we get mercury from?

[Theranged]

And what form is it when we obtain it?

[beso]

I remember an early science class as a kid in 1972 when the teacher demonstrated how sodium liberated hydrogen from water. After a few pieces there was an explosion that sent glass and sodium hydroxide solution flying across the room. No shielding at all from the class and it was fortunate nobody was hurt.

The teacher turned to the class as white as a ghost and tried to claim that he had done that intentionally as a demonstration of how dangerous it could be in chemistry. Yeah sure.

Students were sent to the store room to bring back a big bottle of mercury. Another guy I met one told me how he had stolen some and how funny it was to put some mercury inside his bottom lip and shake his head around.

We burnt magnesium in near pure oxygen and were told to look at it really quickly and look away. No protective glasses for anyone.

We were shown how to waft ammonia fumes and smell them. That stopped when one student took in too much and passed out cold onto the floor.

Another teacher walked into class on day and pulled out an unshielded sample of radioactive Strontium 90 from his shirt pocket and passed it around the room for us to look at then watch it send the geigercounter clicking wildly.

[chakka35]

Am I right in thinking that float glass is produced by floating the molten glass on the surface of a large vat of mercury?

[ChuckFickens]

I believe they use molten tin for that, Chakka.

[chakka35]

Gosh yes, ChuckFickens, that would make more sense since cold mercury would cause rapid differential cooling that would maybe deform or crack the glass. Thanks.

[nightmare]

I still have one of those mercury mazes.
The most difficult thing was trying to negotiate the maze while keeping the blob of mercury in one piece.