Dmitry Mendeleyev was born the youngest of 14 children in Tobolsk, Siberia, in 1834.
His family had been pioneers in desolate Siberia, starting the first printing press, the first newspaper, and the first glass factory.
Russia had been under the strict rule of monarchs called czars, since the sixteenth century and revolutionaries were starting to demand government reforms and more freedom.
These political enemies of the czar were often exiled to Siberia as punishment for their activities.
One of these exiles married one of Mendeleyev’s sisters and taught the eager young Mendeleyev natural science.
In his late teens, Mendeleyev faced a series of setbacks that would threaten his future. His father died and the family’s glass factory burned down.
Mendeleyev’s mother decided to take her son to St. Petersburg to further his education. He quickly had to learn to speak Russian rather than his Siberian dialect to complete his degree.
After college his mother died, and he was told he had six months to live due to a lung condition.
Luckily, the doctors were wrong, and in 1865 Mendeleyev was made a professor of chemistry at St. Petersburg University.
It was here that Mendeleyev would devise his periodic table of the elements in 1869.
Related Posts
-
What Changes Have Been Made To Mendeleyev’s Periodic Table and How Many New Elements Have Been Added?
Considering all the discoveries that have been made since Dmitri Mendeleyev devised his periodic table, there have been few changes to his table. Fifty new elements have been added as they have been…
-
Who Discovered the Periodic Chart of Elements and When was the Periodic Table invented?
When most people think of the chemical elements, they picture Mendeleyev's Periodic Chart of the Elements. This organizational table has served as the one accepted organizing system for the elements that make up…
-
How Did the Periodic Table of the Elements Originate and Who First Listed the Elements By Atomic Weight?
The discoveries of chemists like Dalton, Lavoisier, and Avogadro concerning atoms and atomic weights made it easier for scientists to detect new elements. In 1808, John Dalton created a table of the 21…
-
How Did Dmitri Mendeleev Arrange His New Periodic Table of the Elements By Weight and Chemical Properties?
There were several reasons why Dmitri Mendeleev was able to put together a remarkably accurate periodic table. First, he used the new atomic weights calculated by Italian chemist Stanislao Cannizzaro. Cannizzaro had taken…
-
How Did Dmitri Mendeleev’s Periodic Table Enable Him To Predict the Properties of Undiscovered Elements?
Dmitri Mendeleev was convinced he had uncovered the chemical "order" of the universe, but he had two problems. First, there were gaps in the table-places where elements were needed to complete the group.…
-
Who invented the periodic table and when?
Russian scientist Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleyev invented the periodic table in 1869. In gratitude, scientists named element 101 after him. mendelevium.
