Amedeo Blog: London Olympics 2012

The Olympics come but once every four years … or two years since the fateful switch in the 1990s where we saw the Winter Olympics held in 1992 (Albertville) and 1994 (Lillehammer). Being born in 1980, I don’t think I became aware of the Olympics as an interesting event until Atlanta 1996. Who didn’t fall in love with Kerri Strug that year? I also have this image in my head of a hundred Atlanta children exclaiming “Y’all come back now, y’hear?” at the Closing Ceremonies. To be fair, I was aware of the epic Nancy Kerrigan/Tonya Harding Slugfest 1994, but mostly because Nancy’s crying face was on every newspaper in the country. Sadly, I was completely oblivious to the Sydney 2000 Olympics being as I was a junior in college and had more pressing things to do (drink… don’t judge). I still think the Beijing Olympics of 2008 were fascinating and I’m nostalgic for awesomely named venues like “The Birdnest” and “The Watercube.” Somehow London 2012’s “North Greenwich Arena” leaves something to be desired.

Recently a friend recommended the application Viggle to me so I’ve been watching entirely too much of the London coverage while desperately trying to earn points towards Barnes and Noble giftcards (I have an addiction). I haven’t enjoyed the Games this much since Dominque Moceanu gymnasticked her way through “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.”

So… being in the Olympic spirit, I decided to provide you with an Olympic-themed post. Enjoy!

London

The Royal Society in London is one of those organizations that I’ve wanted to research further due to its rich history. Loosely strung together in the 1640s, it officially came into existence in 1660. Of the twelve founding members, one was Robert Boyle (he was important in my Absolute Zero post). This was a grouping of scientific men who discussed theories, hosted lectures, and published their works. It’s been influential and high brow since its inception.

King Charles II provided the society with a royal charter in 1662. While that seems important, my interest was piqued by another important happening that year: the society received a paper for publication outlining a technique for making sparkling wine (aka champagne). The method was developed not by a Frenchman, but by a one Christopher Merrett. He was born in Gloucestershire, England and died in Hatton Garden. Dom Perignon, widely considered to be the father of champagne, didn’t have a protocol for making the beverage until 1697. I don’t think I need to further spell out the irony of this situation.

Gold

Who doesn’t like gold? Have you seen the price of gold recently? Good gracious – I have to buy a piece of white gold jewelry, but it’s not happening soon. Apparently a lot of people like gold right now.

And what’s not to like? Elemental gold is rather content to hang out by itself. It doesn’t react readily with other earthly components and will, as such, stay pure gold for the majority of its lifetime. However, an elixir (of sorts) exists that will dissolve gold and platinum: aqua regia. Meaning “royal water,” it got its name because it could melt away some of the finest metals worn by royalty.

How it works I will leave for another post, but I did come across an interesting use for aqua regia. At the beginning of World War II, Neils Bohr was in Copenhagen and protecting two Nobel Prize medals from Nazi hands. Smuggled out of Germany in direct defiance of Nazi decrees, Bohr could not be found with them. Given that German soldiers were now marching on Copenhagen, a fast and desperate decision had to be made. Georgy de Hevesy, a Hungarian chemist in Bohr’s lab, dropped the medals into aqua regia. They dissolved slowly, causing much stress and panic among the scientists, but both eventually did dissolve completely and the flasks of pale yellow liquid were stored safely on a shelf while the Nazis tore the laboratory apart.

Amazingly, the bottles remained undisturbed during the war. Upon returning, de Hevesy reversed the chemistry to bring back out the solid gold. In 1952, the Nobel Foundation recast the medals for Max von Laue (1914 Physics winner) and James Franck (1925 Physics winner), the original owners.

Silver

Google “silver and medicine.” The sheer volume of results in astounding. I did not know that silver was considered an antibiotic – did you? I also didn’t know that silver’s medical uses have a history that stretches back into Roman times! I found an article that summarizes the many uses of silver across the times here. A few highlights: Persian kings would not drink water unless it was carried in silver containers and it continued to be used as a preservative up through World War II. Interestingly, both the gold and silver medals at the London Olympics are 92.5% silver – good to know in case you need it.

Also, McKayla? Wear that silver proudly. We all watched your previous four vaults - you're the best even if yesterday wasn't your day.

Bronze

Most people will never win an Olympic medal or even be in the running for one. It seems like just being on the podium would be enough for a lot of us. However, thinking of the crying Russians this past week in the women’s gymnastics team and all-around finals, I have to conclude that silver was not something they felt good about. I even read an article that said Viktoria shoved her silver medal in her jacket pocket instead of continuing to wear it. On the flip side, 27 year old Beth Tweddle won the bronze medal in today’s uneven bar final. She has been competing on the international stage for nearly a decade (an eternity in this sport), but had yet to earn an Olympic medal. According to what I’ve read, she was thrilled with her victory.

In 1995, three social psychologists set out to answer this question: Who is happier: a silver medalist or a bronze medalist? The answer was a resounding “bronze!” Silver medalists are heartbroken at being so close to gold while bronze medalists are thrilled to just make the top three. I will, however, happily accept any Olympic medal anyone wants to give me.

Enjoy the rest of the London 2012 Olympics!!