20 August: Silicon

Swedish chemist Jons Jakob Berzelius, was born on this date in 1779. He is credited with identifying several chemical elements, including silicon, about which here are 10 facts.

1. Silicon’s chemical symbol is Si and its atomic number is 14.

2. Its melting point is 1414 °C and its boiling point is 3265 °C, the second highest of all the metalloids and nonmetals. Only boron has higher melting and boiling points.

3. Silicon is the eighth most abundant element in the universe after hydrogen, Helium, carbon, nitrogen, Oxygen, Iron, and Neon. While it rarely occurs in its pure form on Earth, over 90% of our planet’s crust is composed of silicate minerals, making it the second most abundant element in the Earth’s crust after oxygen.

4. Silicon dioxide (SiO2), also known as silica, is the second most studied compound, second only to Water. It’s a component of some of the materials we know as crystals, including quartz, amethyst, citrine, onyx and jasper. It’s also a major constituent of many rocks such as granite and sandstone.

5. Ancient civilizations such as the Egyptians, Chinese and Phoenicians made jewellery from rock crystals and used silica to make Glass. Natural silicate compounds were used to make mortar for construction of early buildings. Today it is used to make concrete and ceramics.

6. Silicon has a high affinity for oxygen, which is why it’s mostly found in compounds, and this is also why its pure form wasn’t discovered until 1823.

7. It’s a necessary element in biology although most animals only need trace amounts. Some sea sponges and microorganisms have skeletal structures made of silica. There is some evidence that silicon is important to human nail, Hair, bone, and skin tissues, and for synthesis of elastin and collagen, of which the aorta contains the greatest quantity in the human body. Hence it is considered an essential element. Because it’s so abundant, though, it’s hard to study the effects of a deficiency of it.

8. Scientists consider that silicon could be the basis of the chemistry of alien life, as an alternative to carbon.

9. Silicon is essential to the transistors and integrated circuit chips used in most modern technology such as smartphones and other computers. Hence the late 20th century to early 21st century has been described as the Silicon Age, and is also the reason that Santa Clara Valley in California, with its semiconductor industry, acquired the nickname Silicon Valley.

10. There are several more places which have been given similar nicknames. There’s another Silicon Valley in India. There’s also Silicon Forest in Oregon; Silicon Hills in Austin, Texas; Silicon Slopes in Salt Lake City, Utah; Silicon Alley in New York City; and Silicon Beach in Los Angeles. The UK has a few, too: Silicon Fen in Cambridge; Silicon Roundabout in London; Silicon Glen in Scotland; and Silicon Gorge in Bristol.

Character birthday

Monlik. Little is known about the origins of Monlik, except that he came to Earth through a wormhole from Infinitus and therefore his appearance (his body is composed of an organic substance similar to obsidian) and power (toughness, strength and psionics) is most likely a result of wormhole travel. He is a member of a band of villains known as The Bruisers.