This book has been in the making for about six years, although perhaps I should
say about 20 years since it was that long ago that I undertook my Ph.D. at what was
then Chelsea College, University of London, under the excellent supervision of
the late Heinz Post. Of course, I could go back even further and mention that my
love affair with the periodic table began when I was still in my teens and attending
Walpole grammar school in the West London borough of Ealing.