Pure lead is dense and soft and has a bluish-white colour, although this turns to a dull grey in air, and is represented by the symbol Pb in the periodic table. Because it’s so widespread in the Earth’s crust and easy to work with, historically lead has been a very popular material for humans to work with. It has been used for all sorts of things, like bullets, paints, batteries and in plumbing, with the ancient Romans using lead for their water pipes. One thing it’s not used for, however, is the lead in your pencils – this is graphite!
This is a general science zone, with a mix of scientists from different backgrounds. There is a scientist who looks at people’s DNA to find out if it is making them poorly, one who uses maths to find out how cells work and one who researches how babies brains develop. There is also someone trying to make a quantum computer using light particles, and someone experimenting on suspect counterfeit food and drinks samples to see if they are genuine.