If we go across the role on the periodic table from sodium to maesium, the ionization energy increases and the reactivity of the metal decreases. One thing that's very apparent is the difference in how we store the metals. Maesium is not stored under caracene or mineral oil, it's stored out in the air. Even after it's being stored out in the air for months, the metal still has a very shiny surface. The maesium is an excellent conductor of electricity, as we can see using our conductivity tester. It's also a very malleable, flexible metal. If we add the maesium metal to some water, we notice that the maesium metal sinks. Group two metals are more dense than water. We also notice that there's no apparent reaction between the maesium metal and the water. The maesium metal has a much higher ionization energy than the sodium and therefore a lower reactivity. The maesium will react slowly with the water at room temperature, but the reaction will increase significantly if we warm the sample. The bubbles that we see are not hydrogen gas but steam. The solution will turn purple over a period of time as small amounts of maesium hydroxide are produced. In order to demonstrate that we're getting a reaction, we'll add something to the failing to the test tube. The solution will turn purple due to the formation of maesium hydroxide.