Thulium is a chemical element with the symbol Tm and atomic number 69. It is the third-last element in the lanthanide series. Like the other lanthanides, the most common oxidation state is +3, seen in its oxide and other compounds. In aqueous solution, like compounds of other late lanthanides, soluble thulium compounds form coordination complexes with nine water molecules. In 1879, the Swedish chemist Per Teodor Cleve separated from the rare earth oxide erbia another two unknown components, which he called holmia and thulia. A pure sample of thulium metal was first obtained in 1911. Thulium is the second-least abundant of the lanthanides, after radioactively unstable promethium, only found in trace quantities on Earth, it is an workable metal with a bright silvery-gray luster. It is soft and tarnishes in air. Despite its high price and rarity, thulium is used as the radiation source in portable X-ray devices, in some solid-state lasers, it has no significant biological role and is not toxic. Pure thulium metal has a silvery luster, which tarnishes on exposure to air.

The metal can be cut with a knife, as it has a Mohs hardness of 2 to 3. Thulium is ferromagnetic below 32 K, antiferromagnetic between 32 and 56 K, paramagnetic above 56 K. Thulium has two major allotropes: the more stable hexagonal β-Tm. Thulium tarnishes in air and burns at 150 °C to form thulium oxide: 4 Tm + 3 O2 → 2 Tm2O3Thulium is quite electropositive and reacts with cold water and quite with hot water to form thulium hydroxide: 2 Tm + 6 H2O → 2 Tm3 + 3 H2 Thulium reacts with all the halogens. Reactions are slow at room temperature, but are vigorous above 200 °C: 2 Tm + 3 F2 → 2 TmF3 2 Tm + 3 Cl2 → 2 TmCl3 2 Tm + 3 Br2 → 2 TmBr3 2 Tm + 3 I2 → 2 TmI3 Thulium dissolves in dilute sulfuric acid to form solutions containing the pale green Tm ions, which exist as 3+ complexes: 2 Tm + 3 H2SO4 → 2 Tm3+ + 3 SO2−4 + 3 H2 Thulium reacts with various metallic and non-metallic elements forming a range of binary compounds, including TmN, TmS, TmC2, Tm2C3, TmH2, TmH3, TmSi2, TmGe3, TmB4, TmB6 and TmB12.

In those compounds, thulium exhibits valence states +2 and +3, the +3 state is most common and only this state has been observed in thulium solutions. Thulium exists as a Tm3+ ion in solution. In this state, the thulium ion is surrounded by nine molecules of water. Tm3+ ions exhibit a bright blue luminescence. Thulium's only known oxide is Tm2O3; this oxide is sometimes called "thulia". Reddish-purple thulium compounds can be made by the reduction of thulium compounds. Examples of thulium compounds include the halides; some hydrated thulium compounds, such as TmCl3 · 7H2O and Tm23 · 6H2O are greenish-white. Thulium dichloride reacts vigorously with water; this reaction results in hydrogen gas and Tm3 exhibiting a fading reddish color. Combination of thulium and chalcogens results in thulium chalcogenides. Thulium reacts with hydrogen chloride to produce thulium chloride. With nitric acid it yields thulium nitrate, or Tm3; the isotopes of thulium range from 145Tm to 179Tm. The primary decay mode before the most abundant stable isotope, 169Tm, is electron capture, the primary mode after is beta emission.

The primary decay products before 169Tm are element 68 isotopes, the primary products after are element 70 isotopes. Thulium-169 is thulium's only primordial isotope and is the only isotope of thulium, thought to be stable; the longest-lived radioisotopes are thulium-171, which has a half-life of 1.92 years, thulium-170, which has a half-life of 128.6 days. Most other isotopes have half-lives of less. Thirty-five isotopes and 26 nuclear isomers of thulium have been detected. Most isotopes of thulium lighter than 169 atomic mass units decay via electron capture or beta-plus decay, although some exhibit significant alpha decay or proton emission. Heavier isotopes undergo beta-minus decay. Thulium was discovered by Swedish chemist Per Teodor Cleve in 1879 by looking for impurities in the oxides of other rare earth elements. Cleve started by removing all of the known contaminants of erbia. Upon additional processing, he obtained two new substances; the brown substance was the oxide of the element holmium and was named holmia by Cleve, the green substance was the oxide of an unknown element.

Cleve named the oxide thulia and its element thulium after Thule, an Ancient Greek place name associated with Scandinavia or Iceland. Thulium's atomic symbol was once Tu. Thulium was so rare that none of the early workers had enough of it to purify sufficiently to see the green color; the first researcher to obtain nearly pure thulium was Charles James, a British expatriate working on a large scale at New Hampshire College in Durham. In 1911 he reported his results, having used his discovered method of bromate fractional crystallization to do the purification, he famously needed 15,000 pur

Wang Dazhi was a Chinese educator. Wang Dazhi was born in Yi County, Anhui in 1903, he attended the Nanjing Xiaozhuang Normal College, founded by Tao Xingzhi. After graduating in 1928, Tao appointed him to be the principal of the Xin'an Primary School, a rural school in Huai'an, Jiangsu province that Tao had established, from 1928 to 1935. In 1935, Wang Dazhi established the Xin'an Lüxing Tuan or Xin'an Traveling Group to test Tao Xingzhi's education philosophy of treating society as one's school and to advocate national salvation in the face of Japanese aggression. On October 10, 1935, Wang and 14 primary students left Huaian and began a 25,000 km journey that would take 17 years through 22 provinces and Hong Kong. Along the way, they held public rallies, showed film, held dramatic and dance performances, sang songs, wrote articles and created artworks to advocated national salvation and anti-Japanese resistance, their group expanded to several hundred youth members. They had no formal school structure but continued their education by teaching each other, inviting guest lecturers and undertaking new activities such as filmmaking and choreography.

Famous songwriters such as Wang Luobin, Tian Han and Nie Er wrote songs for them. Group members were invited to act in Cai Chusheng's films, they drew patronage from political and military leaders across party lines. Luminaries who lent support include Chen Guofu, Zhou Fohai, Feng Yuxiang, Jiang Qing, Tong Lin'ge, Zhao Dengyu, Fu Zuoyi, Ma Bufang, Wang Luobin, Zhu Shaoliang, Chen Cheng, Zhou Enlai, Guo Moruo, Tian Han, Bai Chongxi, Du Yuming, Li Jishen, Zhang Fakui, Li Kenong, Liao Chengzhi, Liu Shaoqi, Chen Yi, Zhang Aiping, Huang Kecheng, Su Yu, Rao Shushi and Zhu De. Tao Xingzhi recounted the group's exploits in his fundraising trips overseas. Many of Wang's students in the Xin'an Traveling Group went on to become accomplished artists, musicians and leaders in the Chinese artistic world, including two past presidents of the China Academy of Art. After the People's Republic of China was founded, Wang Dazhi first served as the president of Nanjing Xiaozhuang Normal College, his alma mater, closed due to political reasons in 1930.

He moved to Beijing to become the deputy director of Chinese Character Reform Committee at the Ministry of Education and to Hainan where he served as the Party Secretary of Guangdong College of Nationalities. Wang died in Beijing in March 1980 and is buried near the Xin'an Primary School in Huaian

Ernie and the Emperors were a rock band from Santa Barbara, California. They were an example of 1960s rock and pop, influenced by the British Invasion with songs that employed rich harmonies, instrumental hooks, upbeat lyrics, their biggest hit was their single "Meet Me At The Corner", a hit for them as Ernie and the Emperors. In years, they released materials as The Giant Crab, as Big Brother Ernie Joseph, Faith and as the Brian Faith Band. Ernie and The Emperors started their career as the opening act for the Isley Brothers at the Earl Warren Showgrounds in Santa Barbara. Soon after, having won numerous Battle of the Bands competitions, they were made the official house band for the venue. After signing a deal with Reprise Records in 1965, they enjoyed a hit, "Meet Me At The Corner" in the California Gold Coast locale of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties; the Emperors carried out a performance schedule. When bass man Randy Busby left and Kenny Fricia stepped in and the band changed their name to the Giant Crab.

As each of the members were drafted into the military the band changed, but upon returning they re-reformed, releasing a string of singles and two LPs. In 1968 Greg Munford, lead vocalist in the Strawberry Alarm Clock hit and Peppermints joined the Giant Crab as a studio artist and performed with the band in Wolfman Jack's California College Tour. Greg Munford performed in the Southeast Tour with the band. In 1969 Ernie Joseph changed his musical direction with the driving rock Confusion album, teaming up with brothers "Ruben the Jet", drummer Steve Dunwoodie, to tour the southeastern states as Big Brother Ernie Joseph, a tour that included the Love Valley Music Festival near Greensboro, NC). While on tour they performed with the Allman Brothers Band, Bruce Springsteen & Steel Mill, members of the Marshall Tucker Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Greg Munford and Ed King of the Strawberry Alarm Clock; the brothers continued to perform as Big Brother Ernie Joseph, as the Brian Faith Band, producing CDs and videos not only of themselves, but many noted artists.

They have worked with such notables as Ritchie Blackmore, Tim Bogert, Eddie Brigati, Cornelius Bumpus, Kenny Cetera, Burleigh Drummond, Bobby Harris, Doug Ingle, Christian Love, Steve Lukather, Peter Noone, Roy Orbison, Katy Perry, Rare Earth, Jamie Shane, Floyd Sneed, Nick St. Nicholas, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Hubert Tubbs, Chuck Wild, many more; the Orosco brothers are the subject of a documentary entitled Makin' It Ernie Orosco Ray Orosco "Ruben the Jet" Orosco Randy Busby Meet Me At The Corner/Got A Lot I Want To Say Listen Girl/Soft Summer Breezes Thru the Fields/Shimmy Like Kate Day By Day /Kind of Funny A Giant Crab Comes Forth Believe It or Not/Lydia Purple Hi Ho Silver Lining/Hot Line Conversation Cool It/Intensify My Soul Hot Line Conversation/E. S. P, it Started With a Kiss/The Answer is No Cool It... Helios Confusion South East Tour An All-American Emperor Ernie Joseph, An All-American Emperor The Brian Faith Band "Makin' It" A documentary movie about Ernie and the Emperors, http://www.

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