Lead
hideLead (pronounced /ˈlɛd/) is a main-group element with symbol Pb (Latin: plumbum) and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal, also considered to be one of the heavy metals. Lead has a bluish-white color when freshly cut, but tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed to air. It has a shiny chrome-silver luster when melted into a liquid.
Lead is used in building construction, lead-acid batteries, bullets and shot, weights, and is part of solder, pewter, fusible alloys and radiation shields. Lead has the highest atomic number of all stable elements, although the next element, bismuth, has a half-life so long (longer than the estimated age of the universe) it can be considered stable. Like mercury, another heavy metal, lead is a potent neurotoxin that accumulates in soft tissues and bone over time. Lead poisoning was documented in ancient Rome, Greece, and China.
For more information about Lead, read the full article at
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News tagged with lead
Soup can reopens mystery of doomed Franklin Expedition
Dec 15, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Lead levels that are "off the scale" have been confirmed after tests were done this morning on the lid of a soup can dating back more than 150 years. The findings reopen the mystery surrounding ...
Road trains may be coming soon to Europe (w/ Video)
Nov 13, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Road trains linking vehicles together in a traveling convoy are planned for Europe. With only the lead vehicle being actively driven, the road trains would allow commuters to sleep, read a ...
Young adults' blood lead levels linked to depression, panic disorder
Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry
Dec 07, 2009 |
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Young adults with higher blood lead levels appear more likely to have major depression and panic disorders, even if they have exposure to lead levels generally considered safe, according to a report in the December issue ...
Atmospheric lead causes clouds to form more easily, could change pattern of rain and snow
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Apr 19, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- By sampling clouds -- and making their own -- researchers have shown for the first time a direct relation between lead in the sky and the formation of ice crystals that foster clouds. The ...
Childhood lead exposure causes permanent brain damage
Dec 01, 2009 |
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A study using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to evaluate brain function revealed that adults who were exposed to lead as children incur permanent brain injury. The results were presented today at the annual ...
Exposure to lead, tobacco smoke raises risk of ADHD
Nov 23, 2009 |
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Children exposed prenatally to tobacco smoke and during childhood to lead face a particularly high risk for ADHD, according to research done at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.
Nanoscale materials grow with the flow (Videos)
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Feb 12, 2009 |
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Imagine unloading a pile of bricks onto the ground and watching the bricks assemble themselves into a level, straight wall in only a few minutes. While merely a fantasy for builders in the everyday world, ...
FDA: Yes, lots of lipsticks contain lead
Sep 05, 2009 |
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The good news: After a long, tight-lipped silence, the U.S. Federal Drug Administration tested lipsticks for lead -- a move that eco-nonprofit organizations like Campaign for Safe Cosmetics have been calling for years. After ...
Med school discovery could lead to better cancer diagnosis, drugs
Nov 21, 2008 |
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A Florida State University College of Medicine research team led by Yanchang Wang has discovered an important new layer of regulation in the cell division cycle, which could lead to a greater understanding of the way cancer ...
Children's blood lead levels linked to lower test scores
Oct 19, 2009 |
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Exposure to lead in early childhood significantly contributes to lower performances on end-of-grade (EOG) reading tests among minority and low-income children, according to researchers at Duke University and North Carolina ...
Dangers of lead pollution have not gone away -- particularly for children
Sep 17, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The campaign for car drivers to make the switch from leaded to unleaded petrol has been hailed as a major environmental success story in recent years. But despite the dramatic change in our ...
CDC: Lead dust in cars source of kids' poisoning
Aug 20, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Some childhood lead poisonings in Maine last year came from an unusual source - lead dust tracked into the family car.
Lead poisoning threatens a vulnerable albatross population
Oct 28, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Populations of Laysan albatross face severe declines due to widespread lead poisoning of chicks unless comprehensive cleanup measures gain momentum, according to a recent study.
2nd lead poisoning case hits China, 1,300 sick
Aug 20, 2009 |
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(AP) -- China detained two factory officials after 1,300 children were poisoned by pollution from a manganese processing plant, state media said Thursday, days after emissions from a lead smelter in another ...
Lead-based consumer paint remains a global public health threat
Aug 04, 2009 |
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Although lead content in paint has been restricted in the United States since 1978, University of Cincinnati (UC) environmental health researchers say in major countries from three continents there is still ...
