The shadowy past of arsenic - Neil Bradbury episode artwork

EPISODE · May 28, 2026 · 7 MIN

The shadowy past of arsenic - Neil Bradbury

from TED-Ed · host TED-Ed

Dig into the history of arsenic dating back to ancient civilizations, and find out why this element is known as the king of poisons.--No substance has been as constant an ally to insidious scheming as arsenic, the so-called “king of poisons.” In its chemically pure form, it isn’t much of a threat because our bodies don’t absorb it well; it’s when arsenic combines with other elements that things get dangerous. So, how did this substance become such a popular poison? Neil Bradbury digs into the element's sordid and lethal history.Lesson by Neil Bradbury, directed by Luisa Holanda.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-dark-history-of-arsenic-neil-bradburyDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-dark-history-of-arsenic-neil-bradbury/digdeeperAnimator's website: https://www.luisaholanda.com----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Lex Azevedo, Michael Aquilina, Jason A Saslow, Yansong Li, Cristóbal Moenne, Dawn Jordan, Prasanth Mathialagan, Samuel Doerle, David Rosario, Dominik Kugelmann - they-them, Siamak Hajizadeh, Ryohky Araya, Mayank Kaul, Christophe Dessalles, Heather Slater, Sandra Tersluisen, Zhexi Shan, Bárbara Nazaré, Andrea Feliz, Victor E Karhel, Sydney Evans, Latora, Noel Situ, emily lam, Sid, Niccolò Frassetto, Mana, I'm here because of Knowledge Fight Facebook group., Linda Freedman, Edgardo Cuellar, Jaspar Carmichael-Jack, Michael Burton, VIVIANA A GARCIA BESNE, The Vernon's, Olha Bahatiuk, Jesús Bíquez Talayero, Chels Raknrl, Sai Pranavi Jonnalagadda, Stuart Rice, Jing Chen, Vector-Dopamine math, Jasper Song, Giorgio Bugnatelli, Chardon, Eddy Trochez, OnlineBookClub.org, Eric Shear, Leith Salem, Omar Hicham, and Adrian Rotaru. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dig into the history of arsenic dating back to ancient civilizations, and find out why this element is known as the king of poisons.--No substance has been as constant an ally to insidious scheming as arsenic, the so-called “king of poisons.” In its chemically pure form, it isn’t much of a threat because our bodies don’t absorb it well; it’s when arsenic combines with other elements that things get dangerous. So, how did this substance become such a popular poison? Neil Bradbury digs into the element's sordid and lethal history.Lesson by Neil Bradbury, directed by Luisa Holanda.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-dark-history-of-arsenic-neil-bradburyDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-dark-history-of-arsenic-neil-bradbury/digdeeperAnimator's website: https://www.luisaholanda.com----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Lex Azevedo, Michael Aquilina, Jason A Saslow, Yansong Li, Cristóbal Moenne, Dawn Jordan, Prasanth Mathialagan, Samuel Doerle, David Rosario, Dominik Kugelmann - they-them, Siamak Hajizadeh, Ryohky Araya, Mayank Kaul, Christophe Dessalles, Heather Slater, Sandra Tersluisen, Zhexi Shan, Bárbara Nazaré, Andrea Feliz, Victor E Karhel, Sydney Evans, Latora, Noel Situ, emily lam, Sid, Niccolò Frassetto, Mana, I'm here because of Knowledge Fight Facebook group., Linda Freedman, Edgardo Cuellar, Jaspar Carmichael-Jack, Michael Burton, VIVIANA A GARCIA BESNE, The Vernon's, Olha Bahatiuk, Jesús Bíquez Talayero, Chels Raknrl, Sai Pranavi Jonnalagadda, Stuart Rice, Jing Chen, Vector-Dopamine math, Jasper Song, Giorgio Bugnatelli, Chardon, Eddy Trochez, OnlineBookClub.org, Eric Shear, Leith Salem, Omar Hicham, and Adrian Rotaru. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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This episode was published on May 28, 2026.

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Dig into the history of arsenic dating back to ancient civilizations, and find out why this element is known as the king of poisons.--No substance has been as constant an ally to insidious scheming as arsenic, the so-called “king of poisons.” In its...

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