Buying gallium with pocket money…

One of the amazing things about having a child is finding yourself wrapped up in their hobbies – interests that seem to come out of nowhere and sometimes fade away as quickly as they appear​, but give you a glimpse of the personalities they’re growing.

I love the fact that my son trawls YouTube for experiment videos and can spend ages on eBay and Amazon looking for elements and chemicals. Now I need to figure out what to make with the gallium he bought with his pocket money.

What is gallium used for in everyday life?

Why, playing Terminator, of course!

It was great fun playing around with it, and naturally it instantly made me think  of Robert Patrick as the T1000, but I couldn’t help wondering if this stuff was going to kill me. It stained a glazed plate and freaked me out when it left a grey residue on my palm, but I’ve been assured it’s quite safe.