I Officially Feel Old

[Scriveyn]

Originally Posted by ZenGum

In a friend's family's garage I saw some 1950s Reader's Digests.

I mostly remember the add for chlorine .... to paraphrase (very loosely):

This 4 mile irrigation pipe was blocked with weeds and algae. The technicians from XXXX company added pure chlorine until saturation level was reached, and now the pipe flows clear and smooth. Chlorine, wonder chemical of the modern era - also a crucial component of the new insecticide DDT! Safe and effective!


Errrrrrrmmmm.....

Popular Science mag (1939): Have Fun With Quicksilver

"Mercury, the Liquid Mystery Metal, Offers a Fascinating Field of Experiment to Amateur-Chemistry Enthusiasts ...."

Scaaary!


Edit: Apropos de "chlorine", there is more: Fun with the halogens

" .... Uniting bromine with hydrogen yields hydrogen bromide, or hydrobromic acid just as chlorine and hydrogen form hydrogen chloride, or hydrochloric acid. Hydrobromic acid reacts with substances to form bromides, as does its better-known relative, hydrochloric acid, to form chlorides.
...
To make hydrogen bromide, place a half ounce of potassium bromide or sodium bromide in an Erlenmeyer flask or a retort, with a capacity of sixty to 200 cubic centimeters (two to seven fluid ounces). Cover the chemical to a depth of an eighth of an inch or so with strong phosphoric acid, which you can buy at any drug store under the name of eighty-five-percent, or sirupy, phosphoric acid. ...."