Mercury, for example. Imagine a drop of mercury on the top of a marble table. Then, lift the table and let the mercury slide. It´s like water but more perfect, because it´s metal and because it doesn´t dry up. If you throw water to a crystal, it spreads and melt. And it dries, besides. Mercury not. Mercury is the most perfect drop that exists. And although steel is really spectacular, mercury is more spectacular than steel because it´s liquid and cold. Mercury is a funny thing
The mercury thermometers used to be one of the first experiences of scientific surprise in the childhood and their desaparition makes the children loose it. When you were ill and the thermometer broke down, the drops of mercury looked like a strange flock.
The mist of fever joined to the amazement made the experience really odd. We were told about this in the poem metales pesados by Carlos Marzal.
In other post, we´ll talk about the Mad hatter from the book Alice in Wonderlad. He was mad because of an intoxication of mercury, something very usual in that job
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