The Story of Indy Indium: Loser Turned Instant Hero, Scientist, Mayor, and Race Car Junkie

Indy Indium was a nerd element. He just couldn’t fit in. Like the time he tried to pal around with The Clique, which consisted of the elements Oxygen, Nitrogen, and Carbon. They told Indy quite frankly that he simply couldn’t hang out with them because he weighed too much. True, Indy’s atomic weight is 114.82 g, as opposed to The Clique’s consecutive weights of 16.0g, 14.0 g, and 12.0g, but that was no reason to treat him like such a weirdo.

The truth was that Indy did feel like a weirdo. He felt worthless. "Gosh," Indy thought, "I can’t even occur by myself. I have to be extracted from zinc ores, for goodness’ sake."

Just then, Arnold "Iron Man" came by. "Hey, Softy! Why don’t you get a tan!" He walked off, laughing, continuing on his way to the gym.

Indy was not laughing, however. His nickname was Softie, due to his extreme softness, compared to other elements like iron. And he was always teased because of his silver-white color. "Iron Man forgot to mention my family," thought Indy. "Or shall I say my like of one." He was very bitter about the fact that his element was considered rare, and he didn’t have any nearby Indium relatives.

Indy decided to do something about his loser life. He was going to be someone in the scientific world! Indy headed on down to the water plant. "Maybe they need some indium," he thought. But when he inquired about work, the foreman told him they were only looking for hydrogen and oxygen. "Of course," thought Indy, "after all, it is a water plant. I’ll go look somewhere else."

Next Indy headed down to the jewelry store. "Maybe they need me here," Indy told himself. But the store owner promptly told Indy that unless he was gold or silver, there was no work. Just then, Indy’s only friend, Buddy Barium, yelled to him.

"Hey Indy! I’ve been looking all over for you! Guess who is in town! Jeff Gordon! He is practicing for the Indy 500 down at the racetrack. C’mon, let’s go and watch!

When Indy and Buddy reached the racetrack, there was a huge crowd gathered. Someone kept shouting questions about a certain element, but Indy couldn’t hear. Suddenly, someone pulled his arm. "Hey kid, are you an indium ion?" Indy nodded, waiting for the ridicule that customarily followed. "Well," the man said, "Jeff Gordon is looking for an indium ion. Go on down there."

Indy hesitated, remembering the practical jokes that The Clique had played on him before. Then, all of a sudden, Jeff Gordon himself was in front of Indy. "I’ve been looking all over for an element like you. You must be pretty special there, kid. You are awfully rare," Jeff said. "How about a job?"

So Indy joined Jeff Gordon’s pit crew and changed the racing world. Jeff’s race car specialists discovered that Indium could be used to coat high-speed engines. They spread oil over the indium and spread it in an even layer, allowing the engine to run more smoothly. They also learned that using indium could allow even more electricity to flow through the transistors of pocket radios and such. All they had to do was add a little indium to the germanium in the transistors.

As for Indy, he became famous. After working for Jeff and other scientific researchers, he was awarded the Elemental Prize for his work in the science world. After he retired Indy returned home, where he was elected mayor. Indy won by a landslide over his old rival, Nitrogen, who moved to Florida after his loss and opened a pawn shop in Miami. You can find Indy at home, often sitting in front of his fire, discussing topics such as race cars or Avogadro's number with local citizens. He is currently working on his new book, titled Mole Man: An Intimate Portrait of Amedeo Avogadro.

An Excerpt From Mole Man: An Intimate Portrait of Amedeo Avogadro

Coming to a bookstore near you Spring of '99.

"Many of us know only one kind of mole. The furry animal that burrows in the ground and who is practically blind. But that is only one kind of mole. There is another kind of mole, a number. A number?, you say. Yes, an number. A number so large it is almost incomprehensible. But one man did comprehend it. Amedeo Avogadro. The mole is named after him. Avogadro's number.