Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. If you remember high school chemistry class at all, you might remember what happens when you drop potassium and sodium ...

Even if you slept your way through high school chemistry, there was typically one day that ensured you were awake. That’s when, after an extensive safety lecture, the teacher brought out the alkali ...

Alkali metals like lithium, sodium, and potassium are famous for their dramatic reactions with water, from fizzing to full-on explosions. Their single valence electron makes them eager to react, ...