Mr. Atkinson, Graham's grade eight science teacher, offered an automatic A to anyone who could memorize and sing to the class Tom Lehrer's "The Elements", a list of the chemical elements set to the tune of the Major-General's Song by Gilbert and Sullivan. Graham, seeing this as an easy way to get a good grade, memorized the song and has still not forgotten it. Being a man of his word, Mr. Atkinson did give Graham his A, but the school's science teachers no longer make that deal with students.