MATTER PART 2

YOU REMEMBER THAT MATTER IS ANYTHING THAT HAS

WEIGHT AND TAKES UP SPACE (VOLUME).

SO, IF THINGS ARE MADE OF MATTER, WHAT IS MATTER

MADE OF?

MATTER IS MADE UP OF ATOMS.

ATOMS ARE TINY.

THIS IS A PHOTOGRAPH OF 500 ATOMS (NIOBIUM AND

SELENIUM ATOMS) AS

SEEN THROUGH A SCANNING TUNNELING

MICROSCOPE!

ATOMS HAVE 3 PARTS CALLED “PARTICLES”.

THOSE PARTICLES ARE PROTONS, NEUTRONS, AND

ELECTRONS.

THE CENTER OF ANY ATOM IS CALLED THE NUCLEUS.

THE NUCLEUS IS MADE OF PROTONS AND NEUTRONS.

PROTONS HAVE A POSITIVE CHARGE.

NEUTRONS HAVE A NEUTRAL CHARGE.

That means they don’t have a

positive charge or a negative

charge!

THERE WILL ALWAYS BE THE SAME # OF PROTONS AND

NEUTRONS.

ELECTRONS CIRCLE AROUND THE NUCLEUS.

ELECTRONS HAVE A NEGATIVE CHARGE.

WHAT DO YOU GET WHEN 2 OR MORE OF THE SAME ATOMS

JOIN TOGETHER?

ANSWER…

AN ELEMENT!

IF AN ATOM IS LIKE A SCOOP OF ICE CREAM…

THEN AN ELEMENT WOULD BE LIKE A DOUBLE OR TRIPLE SCOOP (AND EVEN MORE!).

THERE ARE 92 ELEMENTS THAT OCCUR NATURALLY.

YOU MIGHT BE WONDERING…HOW ARE ELEMENTS CREATED

IN NATURE?

THEY ARE CREATED IN THE CENTERS OF STARS.

OUR OWN SUN PRODUCES ELEMENTS.

IT PRODUCES ABOUT 70% HYDROGEN, 28% HELIUM, AND

2% OF THE REST OF THE ELEMENTS.

THE HEAVIER ELEMENTS, LIKE GOLD, ARE CREATED IN ONLY

THE BIGGEST STARS.

EVEN THEN, THESE ELEMENTS ARE ONLY CREATED WHEN THE STAR GOES SUPERNOVA AND GETS REALLYHOT BEFOREIT DIES.

REMEMBER, THERE ARE 92 NATURAL ELEMENTS IN THE

UNIVERSE.

BUT, SCIENTISTS HAVE ACTUALLY CREATED NEW

ELEMENTS IN LABORATORIES (24 AND COUNTING).

SO, THERE ARE ACTUALLY MORE THAN 92 ELEMENTS IN TOTAL.

THAT CONCLUDES THIS PRESENTATION ON MATTER.