Talk:Helium

Semi-protected edit request on 28 November 2017

{in Image side Helium is a p block element but below the image display this is s block element} 1.22.221.159 (talk) 12:35, 28 November 2017 (UTC)

Helium is, by definition, an s-block element, because its valence electrons are in the s-orbital (like hydrogen, sodium, calcium, etc.), but chemically it is clearly a noble gas like the other group 18 elements. So the infobox periodic table correctly places He in group 18, although the infobox later correctly identifies He as an s-block element. There is some relevant discussion at Block (periodic table) #s-block et seq. On that page the table shows elements coloured by block, whereas the table used in this article's infobox shows elements coloured by group. I don't believe there is any contradiction in that, nor that any amendment to the article is necessary. --RexxS (talk) 13:13, 28 November 2017 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 29 January 2018

"Helium-3 is present on Earth only in trace amounts; most of it since Earth's formation, though some falls to Earth trapped in cosmic dust."

Please add {{huh}} after the comma, since this doesn't make sense; it has no verb. 208.95.51.38 (talk) 14:54, 29 January 2018 (UTC) 208.95.51.38 (talk) 14:54, 29 January 2018 (UTC)

I have adjusted the wording for clarity. -- Ed (Edgar181) 15:00, 29 January 2018 (UTC)

Thank you. 208.95.51.38 (talk) 21:11, 29 January 2018 (UTC)

New York criminal court citation

This article was cited twice (without versioning) by Judge Matthew A. Sciarrino, Jr. of the NYC Criminal Court in Manhattan (New York County) to support the proposition that helium is a "noxious material" in denying the dismissal of misdemeanor criminal charges against three men selling helium balloons of "unlawfully possessing or selling noxious material" (New York Penal Law § 270.05).

Helium is defined as a colorless, odorless, tasteless, nontoxic, inert monatomic gas that heads the noble gas group in the periodic table. (See Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, Helium, available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helium.) Although "neutral helium at standard conditions" should not pose a health risk, excessive inhalation of the gas can cause asphyxiation. (See New World Encyclopedia, Helium, available at http://newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Helium.)

People will sometimes inhale helium in order to temporarily make their voices sound high-pitched. "Although this effect may be amusing, it can be dangerous if done in excess." (Id.) This is "because the helium displaces oxygen needed for normal respiration." (Id.) "Inhaling helium directly from pressurized cylinders is extremely dangerous, as the high flow rate can result in barotrauma, fatally rupturing lung tissue." (Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, Helium, available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helium.) Additionally, "[o]n loss of containment this gas can cause suffocation by lowering the oxygen content of the air in confined areas." (See Lenntech, Water Treatment Solutions, Helium, available at http://www.lenntech.com/periodic/elements/he.htm.)

People v. Givenni, 27 Misc.3d 1135 (2010), available at https://www.leagle.com/decision/innyco20100421378 and https://law.justia.com/cases/new-york/other-courts/2010/2010-20138.html

(Note, there were no allegations in this case that anyone inhaled helium directly from pressurized containers or that anyone was harmed; only that the defendants sold helium balloons and that unspecified other parties later inhaled some helium from these balloons). NTK (talk) 00:28, 16 March 2018 (UTC)

This decision was criticized in a law review case comment by Colette Siesholtz:

In People v. Givenni, the court did not use Wikipedia merely as a collateral reference; rather, the Wikipedia definitions and descriptions of helium were used as the primary basis for the court’s central, factual finding that helium is a noxious gas and therefore prohibited for sale.

NYLS Law Review, vol 56, 2011/12 1635 at 1641. available at http://www.nylslawreview.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/16/2012/04/56-4.People-v-Givenni.Siesholtz.pdf

NTK (talk) 01:01, 16 March 2018 (UTC)

"After hydrogen, helium is the second lightest and second most abundant element in the observable universe"

Doesn't that title imply it's the third? Prinsgezinde (talk) 15:45, 3 October 2018 (UTC)

No. -DePiep (talk) 18:12, 3 October 2018 (UTC)