Carol Potenza - Carol Potenza

Krypton, Kryptonite, and the Periodic Table of Death

August 16, 2022 by Carol Potenza

Krypton (Kr) is colorless, odorless, tasteless (Hey. Like iocaine powder) except it is chemically inert, which means it really doesn’t react with anything (1). It is essentially harmless. Or is it? All the noble gases can asphyxiate if you visit a small unventilated space that is full of Kr and not full of enough oxygen or have friends in low places because Kr is five times heavier than air. The only upside is that Kr has a whole-body narcotic effect, so death is relatively painless. There is a radioactive version, Kr-85, that is highly toxic (2) and can cause all …

Nitrogen and the Periodic Table of DEATH

August 16, 2022 by Carol Potenza

N2 gas literally bathes us inside and out because air is 78% N2 (5). Wait. Isn’t the air we breathe oxygen? Around 21% of it is, just like your middle school science teacher told you. And though we breathe N2 in, we don’t need it and exhale it out unchanged. But N can be chemically modified with both positive and deadly consequences.

Iridium and the Periodic Table of Death

August 16, 2022 by Carol Potenza

An asteroid as large as 50 miles across hits what we now call the Yucatan, vaporizes in the 20,000-degree heat caused by the energy of the collision, catches pretty much everything on fire for 100s of miles, creates tsunamis as tall as the Eiffel tower, pitches the world into darkness for a year because of debris and dust thrown into the sky, and completely wipes out the dinosaurs.

Mount Vesuvius, Fluorine, and the Periodic Table of Death

August 16, 2022 by Carol Potenza

In 79 A.D., a catastrophic volcanic eruption rained ash, rocks, and death down on Roman cities in southern Italy. Pyroclastic flows, superheated gaseous clouds measuring 700°C (1300°F) swept down the sides of Mt. Vesuvius (1), vaporized everything in their paths, including the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, and every living creature inhabiting them and the surrounding countryside. This area of Italy is where my people are from. In fact, right next to the region of Campania, where Mt. Vesuvius rests, is Basilicata and its capitol city, Potenza. One day, I think I’ll go there and become their queen. Paesano! This …

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June 8, 2022 by Carol Potenza

Sign up for my VIP list and be the FIRST to know about… New Releases Info! Like Spirit Daughters, Book 3 in the Nicky Matthews Mystery series Cover Reveals! Want to be the FIRST to see my book cover art? Sign up to my Newsletter! Beta Reader Sign Ups! Exclusive to my Newsletter ARC Reader Sign ups! Exclusive to my Newsletter Input on Future Cover Designs? Because everyone needs a little help now and then. Exclusive to my Newsletter. FREE and DISCOUNTED BOOKS from new authors and different genres? Find them in my Newsletter AND on my Facebook page And …

New Mexico + Fiction + Science Mixology

May 1, 2022 by Carol Potenza

I love reading. Books and stories–fiction and nonfiction–take you to places you can never go and let you become friends with people you will never meet. I love writing even more because then I get to create those places and people. People with characteristics I want but will never have except on the page. Places no one will ever go because they’re in the past or future. And science twisted into science fiction that drive the plots of my stories. For example: People: Sergeant Nicky Matthews in Hearts of the Missing, Tony Hillerman Prize winning book. She’s actually based on …