Cosma / Communication / Knowledge / Realm / Physical / Matter / Atom
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Introduction1
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Nuclear Energy Science Tracer Bullet (Library of Congress)
Nuclear Power (Wolfram Alpha)
Dictionary
atom : the smallest particle of an element that can exist either alone or in combination — Webster
OneLook, Free Dictionary, Wiktionary
Thesaurus
Roget’s II (Thesaurus.com), Merriam-Webster Thesaurus, Visuwords
Encyclopedia
Atom is the smallest constituent unit of ordinary matter that has the properties of a chemical element. Every solid, liquid, gas, and plasma is composed of neutral or ionized atoms. Atoms are extremely small; typical sizes are around 100 picometers (a ten-billionth of a meter, in the short scale).
Every atom is composed of a nucleus and one or more electrons bound to the nucleus. The nucleus is made of one or more protons and typically a similar number of neutrons. Protons and neutrons are called nucleons. More than 99.94% of an atom’s mass is in the nucleus. The protons have a positive electric charge, the electrons have a negative electric charge, and the neutrons have no electric charge. If the number of protons and electrons are equal, that atom is electrically neutral. If an atom has more or fewer electrons than protons, then it has an overall negative or positive charge, respectively, and it is called an ion.
The electrons of an atom are attracted to the protons in an atomic nucleus by this electromagnetic force. The protons and neutrons in the nucleus are attracted to each other by a different force, the nuclear force, which is usually stronger than the electromagnetic force repelling the positively charged protons from one another. Under certain circumstances, the repelling electromagnetic force becomes stronger than the nuclear force, and nucleons can be ejected from the nucleus, leaving behind a different element: nuclear decay resulting in nuclear transmutation.
The number of protons in the nucleus defines to what chemical element the atom belongs: for example, all copper atoms contain 29 protons. The number of neutrons defines the isotope of the element. The number of electrons influences the magnetic properties of an atom. Atoms can attach to one or more other atoms by chemical bonds to form chemical compounds such as molecules. The ability of atoms to associate and dissociate is responsible for most of the physical changes observed in nature and is the subject of the discipline of chemistry. — Wikipedia
Atoms (Eric Weisstein’s World of Physics, Wolfram Research)
Encyclopædia Britannica
Portal
CODATA Internationally recommended values of the Fundamental Physical Constants, Atomic and Nuclear (NIST Reference on Constants, Units and Uncertainty)
Radiation, Radioactivity & Radiobiology (Martindale’s Reference Desk)
Search
Atom (WolframAlpha)
Nuclear Power (Wolfram Alpha)
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Innovation
Science
Atomic Physics is the field of physics that studies atoms as an isolated system of electrons and an atomic nucleus. It is primarily concerned with the arrangement of electrons around the nucleus and the processes by which these arrangements change.
The term atomic physics can be associated with nuclear power and nuclear weapons, due to the synonymous use of atomic and nuclear in standard English. Physicists distinguish between atomic physics — which deals with the atom as a system consisting of a nucleus and electrons — and nuclear physics, which considers atomic nuclei alone. — Wikipedia
Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions. Other forms of nuclear matter are also studied. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the atom as a whole, including its electrons. — Wikipedia
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Preservation
History
How Can You See an Atom? – Legends of Chemistry (American Chemical Society)
Museum
National Museum of Nuclear Science & History (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
Library
WorldCat, Library of Congress, UPenn Online Books, Open Library
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Participation
Education
https://fusedweb.llnl.gov/
Atoms Around Us (Chem4Kids)
Nuclear Physics (Physics4Kids)
Atom in a Box: Real-Time Visualization of the Quantum Mechanical Atomic Orbitals (Dauger Research)
Course
Crash Course Physics (YouTube)
Introduction to Nuclear and Particle Physics (MIT OCW Physics)
Nuclear Science and Engineering (MIT OCW Physics)
OER Commons: Open Educational Resources
Community
Organization
International Atomic Engergy Agency
News
Atomic Physics (AAAS EurekAlert)
Science News, Atom & Cosmos
Scientific American
Phys.Org
NPR Archives
Book
Government
Document
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Expression
Humor
Scientist Splits Atom, Finds Toy Prize Inside (Satire Wire)
Hobby
The Man Who Hunts Hidden Radioactive Objects (Chris Baraniuk, BBC Future)
Poem
OEDILF: The Omnificent English Dictionary In Limerick Form
Music
More News …
Phys.org - latest science and technology news stories Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine.
- First detection of exotic 'X' particles in...on January 21, 2022 at 3:14 pm
In the first millionths of a second after the Big Bang, the universe was a roiling, trillion-degree plasma of quarks and gluons—elementary particles that briefly glommed together in countless combinations before cooling and settling into more stable configurations to make the neutrons and protons of ordinary matter.
- Worldwide coordinated search for dark matteron January 21, 2022 at 2:59 pm
An international team of researchers with key participation from the PRISMA+Cluster of Excellence at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) and the Helmholtz Institute Mainz (HIM) has published for the first time comprehensive data on the search for dark matter using a worldwide network of optical magnetometers. According to the scientists, dark matter fields should produce a characteristic signal pattern that can be detected by correlated measurements at multiple stations of the GNOME […]
- Glimmers of hope, but Doomsday Clock stuck at 100...on January 20, 2022 at 5:49 pm
The "Doomsday Clock," representing the judgment of leading science and security experts about perils to human existence, remains at 100 seconds to midnight this year, with advances like Covid-19 vaccines balanced by rising misinformation and other threats.
- How long to midnight? The Doomsday Clock measures...on January 20, 2022 at 12:13 pm
In less than 24 hours the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists will update the Doomsday Clock. It's currently at 100 seconds from midnight—the metaphorical time when the human race could destroy the world with technologies of its own making.
- Gate set tomography: How physicists are revealing...on January 19, 2022 at 4:00 pm
A precision diagnostic developed at the Department of Energy's Sandia National Laboratories is emerging as a gold standard for detecting and describing problems inside quantum computing hardware.
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Related
Here are links to pages about closely related subjects.
“Fundamentals”
Law (Constant) Relativity
Force Gravity, Electromagnetism (Light, Color)
Matter (Microscope) Molecule, Atom (Periodic Table), Particle
“Space”
Universe (Astronomical Instrument)
Galaxy Milky Way, Andromeda
Planetary System Star, Brown Dwarf, Planet, Moon
Our Neighborhood
Solar System Sun
Terrestrial Planet Mercury, Venus, Earth (Moon), Mars
Asteroid Belt Ceres, Vesta
Jovian Planet Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
Trans-Neptunian Object
Kuiper Belt Pluto, Haumea, Makemake
Scattered Disc Eris, Sedna, Planet X
Oort Cloud Etc. Scholz’s Star
Small Body Comet, Centaur, Asteroid
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Notes
1. The resources on this page are are organized by a classification scheme developed exclusively for Cosma.