What is helium? Atoms, elements, and chemistry
Diagram of a helium atom Helium is a very simple atom. Helium is a simple atom. The nucleus of a helium atom has two protons and two neutrons. Around the nucleus, [...]
Diagram of a helium atom Helium is a very simple atom. Helium is a simple atom. The nucleus of a helium atom has two protons and two neutrons. Around the nucleus, [...]
What is heat? A big campfire throws some serious heat Definition of heat When molecules of any kind of atoms get more energy in them than they had before, they [...]
Gold jewelry shaped like bees, from Bronze Age Greece Gold is a much heavier atom than iron, with 79 protons and 79 electrons in each atom. Gold is too heavy for [...]
What are electrons? Lithium, cobalt, and oxygen atoms (as in a lithium-ion battery), seen under an electron microscope from Berkeley Labs What is an electron? An electron is a tiny [...]
You can't really do an experiment using uranium, because it is radioactive and if you experimented with uranium it would make you sick or kill you. So to see how a chain [...]
Steel soup can To see how tin keeps a steel can from rusting, get an empty can. A can from canned green beans or canned peaches or something like that would [...]
A hard-boiled egg To check out some sulphur for yourself, take an ordinary chicken egg and hard-boil it for about twelve minutes. Then break it open and smell the yellow [...]
You can't see an atom, so you can't see how its protons clump together to make the nucleus. But you can see a similar effect when the force of magnetism (a kind [...]
Steam escaping from a tea kettle To see water turning into steam, boil some water in a pot. When it boils, do you see the steam? What does the steam [...]
Sodium exploding on contact with water You really shouldn't experiment with sodium at home, because it blows up. When sodium touches water, it mixes with the water so that two [...]