Wired Article: Development of the Atomic Model

Democritus came to his idea of atoms because...

• Researchers in Sparta gave him data to work with.

• He reasoned that if there are four elements, there must be atoms.

• He reasoned that if he broke something in half enough times than he must eventually arrive at the smallest thing.

• He really just wanted to make Aristotle angry.

Dalton's theory is known as the first scientific atomic model. What made the model scientific?

• Dalton published the model in 1808 in an important scientific journal.

• Dalton had worked to gather a great deal of experimental evidence.

• Dalton was supported by the work of the Greek philosopher Democritus.

• Dalton won a competition with a rival in the courtyard of the Tower of London

Select all of the true statements about the work of J.J. Thomson.

• Thomson worked with beams of electrons.

• Thomson found the masses of the proton and neutron..

• Thomson calculated the relation between the mass and charge of an electron.

• Thomson's model had electron "raisins" embedded in a positive (plum) pudding.

Which statement is true about Rutherford's career?

• Rutherford was a pioneering chemist.

• Rutherford was a biologist.

• Rutherford was a pioneering geneticist.

• Rutherford was a well known physicist.

What was the primary finding of Rutherford's experiment?

• atoms with a very small, incredibly dense nucleus

• the interaction and interchange between protons and neutrons

• he just didn't have a taste for plum pudding

• the detailed structure of alpha particles

• alpha particles are equivalent to helium nuclei

What happened to Rutherford's alpha particles.

• They all passed right through the foil.

• The particles began bouncing off the foil in random directions.

• Most of them passed through the foil, but some bounced off.

• All of the particles deflected at extreme angles, toward the scientist.

Niels Bohr (the great Dane) tried to relate atoms and _____________.

• sound

• light

• philosophy

• plum pudding

Check the true statements.

• atoms have energy levels

• electrons travel in fixed orbits around the nucleus

• specific elements have specific colors of light

• electrons do not interact with atomic energy levels

Electrons in atoms

• orbit around the nucleus like planets

• remain in fixed positions

• I don't know and neither do you. We can only calculate probabilities.

• Given that the nucleus is tiny and the electrons are so fuzzy and spread out can you really, like, be IN an atom? Whoa.