I'm in the computer science building at
the University you might wonder what's a
chemistry professor doing here and the
answer is that 30 years ago I had a mad
idea my children had just started
playing computer games and I suddenly
thought why don't we make computer games
for chemistry I hired two schoolboys
during the summer they made a floppy
disk with the games on it just after
that there was a conference of science
teachers at Nottingham so I set up a
little stall selling the computer disks
my children were sitting my office
duplicating the disks as fast as they
could and I was selling them for two
pounds each and I got so much money in
my pockets that the pockets gave way
money poured out down my trouser legs
it's the only time I've owned real cash
for the University and for 30 years I
had the disks in my filing cabinet and
every so often I looked at it
nostalgically convinced I would never
see the games again and then a few weeks
ago Steve Bagley from the computer
science came to my office and I showed
him this disc and he said I might be
able to make it work I have an old
computer so now I'm here in computer
science to go to Steve's office to see
if I can play the games from this disk
on the computer I know in Steve Begley's
office in our computer science
department here is a BBC micro or BBC
master now I like collecting or
computers those of you seen me on
computer file will pop you've seen my
collection I can see so these are like a
rarity like hens teeth or operating
BBC's pretty common still so I think
most BBC micros are pretty common these
still these days they're in a lot of
schools so still a lot that survived
people collect them
they were still in use controlling the
sort of timetable displays on British
railway stations until a few years ago
stayed when someone gives you an old
dish what were you thinking like you've
got no chance with this like this it
depends how it's been stored photo and
marketing game we looked at pretty
pristine condition but in his filing
cabinets all right that's pretty hopeful
that it would work the dangers really
are that it's been too hard to spit in a
magnetic field or something and it's
wiped the information sometimes the
discs degrading we get mold growing on
them but generally as long as you still
got the media and can find a drive that
still works to play it in you can
usually try and get something off for
ease you will be able to see the damage
if not how do you I've forgotten how to
start ok so the first easy put it into
the yeah disk drive which is he's
brilliant Drive naught so you push it in
and then close the little flat like this
the usual ways you hold down shift and
press the brake key and then let go
brake oh and it starts up this is really
excite that sound computer was a lot
more visceral in those days they made
noises and they sort of you heard them
going so it's not quite centered on the
screen yeah they the monitor for the BBC
micro died so I had to wire up a little
circuit to plug into my Atari one photos
I sent it this is the welcome screen
from our video games the disc that
you've actually got was they've got here
was sponsored by the pharmaceutical
company that then pharmaceutical
companies black so who made enough disks
so that we could send one to every
school in the country and the picture
shows a stylized picture of University
campus this is meant to be the chemistry
department and some people boating on
the lake and this is the tower where the
computer science used to be though when
this was written there wasn't a computer
science department it was still taught
in maths Martin what was you you haven't
seen this wrong I wanted to feel like
saying it pop up the screen wonderful
I mean it's like going back to my youth
nearly 30 years Steve more critical eye
depressions I think I was going back to
my youth as being a school kid and
they're sort of getting software like
this to play I don't think I'd lose this
when I was doing my chemistry a-level
but I certainly saw things similar to
this so yeah it brought back memories
from Israel you have to press the any
key so we have three games here periodic
table multiple-choice and chemistry at
Nottingham the information on the
courses I don't think we need to look at
the chemistry at Nottingham at the
moment no multiple choice okay let's go
which should we try peps we begin by
displaying the full periodic table just
to see what happens
those are the days so should we try and
sing yeah let's have a look at silicon
silicon okay yeah of course and then hit
the question mark oh yeah well it's
quite technical isn't it and I think I
think they've cheated I think they've
got the same thing for quite a few
elements here
perhaps they were running out of storage
space I want to see what it says for
francium doesn't have very much on
francium but it has something there's a
game where you get to fill in the blanks
on the periodic table maybe number two I
think so three user-defined tables we've
have a randomly blank table so on for
what percentage do you think well I
think we got too high it'll take forever
to yes in the video we'll go on longer
than Dave Brailsford yeah so let's get
for about five percent or so six okay
would be adventurous six percent blank
and what 120 seconds that's given to a
minutes well there's a blank in the
first room if I can find the tester so
that should be quite easy that's carbon
you got one and then and tin is laid
Antony's whispered to tell ruthenium the
Russian element and then postman and
then this is as a premium
I think that one's rather fooled him was
it rather for him there and lorentz him
it may have changed since then
what numbers though what numbers on
starting that's at 99 isn't it 19 then
30 seconds left it's not curium
seaborgium nothing what happened you got
five out of seven in a hundred and
eleven seconds you scored two hundred
and thirty two hits base for the full of
pain this is the best part
[Music]
old Rick so I didn't I didn't make kids
fund you're not in the periodicity home
of any professor I don't the reason I've
had this chance to play these games is
because I was talking to Steve who is a
star of one of our other channels
computer file about computing and he had
the computer I had the disk and bingo
but he can't do the games and if you
want to watch computer file there be
links on screen and there are links in
the video description as well and there
are opportunities to try and play this
game online as well if you really want
to
I then copied them via a floppy disk
onto my Mac using the floppy drive over
here and then I can use a BBC emulator
how many every laters can run at the
same time quite a lot in fact