Neptunium
Janet Kuypers
from the “Periodic Table of Poetry” series
5/25/12
When they discovered the planet Neptune,
seeing that distant blue orb
and naming it after the Roman god of the sea,
scientists seemed to be in a mad rush
when discovering elements
to name the new element after the planet.
Someone originally named Germanium
after the (at the time) newly discovered planet,
and at three times the element ninety three
was discovered and given the names
bohemium, ausonium and sequanium.
But after all this research and all this discovery,
it seems fitting that the element
that got the name Neptunium as it’s name
is used on earth mostly in nuclear reactions.
Discovered by bombing uranium
with slow moving neutrons in nuclear fission,
Neptunium is now used in weapons applications.
So it might have something in commonn
with the name of the gas giants, as an energitic,
explosive ball or energy, despite the fact
that like the planet, with it’s deceptively
seductive blue hue, can deep down
still be so tumultuously violent.
But in ancient history and mythology,
Neptune was the brother of Jupiter and Pluto,
each of them presiding over the realms
of Heaven, Earth and the Netherworld. I suppose
Neptune ruled with a gentle hand, although
Neptunium always had that iron fist.
Edited version
(performed at Evanston IL’s Perla Café in a live feature)
Neptunium
(093)
When they discovered the planet Neptune,
seeing that distant blue orb
and naming it after the Roman god of the sea,
scientists seemed to be in a mad rush
when discovering elements
to name a new element after the planet.
Someone originally named the element Germanium
after the (at the time) newly discovered planet,
and at three times the element ninety three
was discovered and given the names
bohemium, ausonium and sequanium.
But after all this research and all this discovery,
it seems fitting that the element
that got the name Neptunium
is used on earth mostly in nuclear reactions.
Discovered by bombing uranium
with slow moving neutrons in nuclear fission,
Neptunium is now used in weapons applications.
So it might have something in common
with the name of the gas giants, as an energetic,
explosive ball of energy, despite the fact
that like the planet, with it’s deceptively
seductive blue hue, it can deep down
still be so tumultuously violent.
In ancient history and mythology,
Neptune was the brother of Jupiter and Pluto,
each presiding over
Heaven, Earth and the Netherworld. So I suppose
Neptune ruled with a gentle hand, although
Neptunium always had that iron fist.
Edited version
(performed at Evanston IL’s Perla Café in a live feature)
Neptunium
(093)
When they discovered the planet Neptune,
seeing that distant blue orb
and naming it after the Roman god of the sea,
scientists seemed to be in a mad rush
when discovering elements
to name a new element after the planet.
Someone originally named the element Germanium
after the (at the time) newly discovered planet,
and at three times the element ninety three
was discovered and given the names
bohemium, ausonium and sequanium.
But after all this research and all this discovery,
it seems fitting that the element
that got the name Neptunium
is used on earth mostly in nuclear reactions.
Discovered by bombing uranium
with slow moving neutrons in nuclear fission,
Neptunium is now used in weapons applications.
So it might have something in common
with the name of the gas giants, as an enigmatic,
explosive ball of energy, despite the fact
that like the planet, with it’s deceptively
seductive blue hue, it can deep down
still be so tumultuously violent.
In ancient history and mythology,
Neptune was the brother of Jupiter and Pluto,
each presiding over
Heaven, Earth and the Netherworld. So I suppose
Neptune ruled with a gentle hand, although
Neptunium always had that iron fist.
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See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading 5 poems from “the Periodic Table of Poetry” in “the Elements of Astronomy” live at Evanston’s Perla Cafe 8/25/12 (this video was filmed from a Canon camera; posted on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Pinterest, Instagram, and Tumblr). #janetkuyperspoetryshow #janetkuypers #janetkuyperspoetry #janetkuypersperiodictablepoetry
See YouTube video
