9781422279519

Understanding the Periodic Table: INTRODUCTION

Introduction

C an you put the world in a chart? On the Periodic Table of the Elements, you will find information about all natural, and artificially made, elements on Earth and in the universe. Everything you see around you, everything you eat or breathe, everything in outer space, and even the very cells that make up your body is made of elements. The chart takes its name from the “periods” into which it is arranged. The general properties and characteristics of the elements, repeated in a pattern, let scientists (and students) focus their learning, rather than memorize all 118 elements. This book will explore the periodic table. Learn how it was developed and about the scientists who contributed to it. Find out how to use the table, and what all those numbers and let- ters mean. Read about some of the controversy surrounding the discovery and naming of the elements on the table. Not only is it a tool, but the periodic table tells quite a story as well.

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