Fall 2026 OLLI Digital Catalog

IT’S ELEMENTAL: DISCOVERY AND SCIENCE (G580)

G – History

What is an element, and how did we come to understand it? This six-week course uses slides and videos to trace ideas about matter from ancient philosophies to modern science. Lavoisier and others used new experimental tools to detect and characterize the elements. Mendeleev organized the results. Further experimental and theoretical approaches investigate radioactivity and atomic structure. We conclude with the creation and cosmic origins of the elements. Course outline available at http://www.udel.edu/0014587.

This offering meets for a total of 6 session(s).

INSTRUCTOR: Robert Ehrlich

EHRLICH, ROBERT — M.S., environmental engineering, University of Delaware; Ph.D., physics, Rutgers University. Research in biochemistry and environmental chemistry at University of Delaware. Former OLLI Council member and newsletter editor.

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