CHAPTER 4. THE ATOM

The atom 4

Introduction ESAAM

We have now looked at many examples of the types of matter and materials that exist

around us and we have investigated some of the ways that materials are classified. But what

is it that makes up these materials? And what makes one material different from another? In

order to understand this, we need to take a closer look at the building blocks of matter - the

atom. Atoms are the basis of all the structures and organisms in the universe. The planets,

sun, grass, trees, air we breathe and people are all made up of different combinations of

atoms.

See introductory video: ( Video: VPrkk at http://www.everythingscience.co.za)

Project:Library assignment: Models of the atom

Our current understanding of the atom came about over a long period of time,

with many different people playing a role. Conduct some research into the

development of at least five different ideas of the atom and the people who

contributed to it.

Some suggested people to look at are: JJ Thomson,

Ernest Rutherford, Marie Curie, JC Maxwell, Max

Planck, Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, Lucretius, LV de

Broglie, CJ Davisson, LH Germer, Chadwick, Werner

Heisenberg, Max Born, Erwin Schrodinger, John Dal-

ton, Empedocles, Leucippus, Democritus, Epicurus,

Zosimos, Maria the Jewess, Geber, Rhazes, Robert

Boyle, Henry Cavendish, A Lavoisier and H Becquerel.

You do not need to find information on all these peo-

ple, but try to find information about as many of them

as possible. Make a list of five key contributions to a

model of the atom and then make a timeline of this

information. (You can use an online tool such as Dip-

ity (http://www.dipity.com/) to make a timeline.) Try to

get a feel for how it all eventually fit together into the

modern understanding of the atom.

A timeline of atomic theory

Chemistry: Matter and Materials 63