Sure, we can’t breathe without H or make squeaky chipmunk voices without He, and Ne is the king of strip-club signage. But being important — or even just in ample supply — has nothing on being popular. And this brilliantly re-imagined periodic table shows us just how much we really care about the elements.
The results in Anders Sandberg’s Google-search-based visualisation hold their fair share of surprises; gold and silver win the day — what’s more popular than money? — while Bohrium and Livermorium barely register, a harsh blow for transuraniums everywhere.
What’s most surprising, perhaps, is that Krypton wasn’t given a boost for doubling as Superman’s homeland, and that Chromium doesn’t appear to have gotten a home-field Google advantage. Oh, well. Looks like in elements — as in life — nepotism only gets Neptunium so far. [Aleph.se via Explore via Brainpicker]