Absolutely Brilliant! Anniversary of Periodic Table of the Elements, when chemistry was born #chemistry #answer #science #happyanniversary
Me! At the Atomic Museum of Albuquerque
What an anniversary. This year marks the 150th for the Periodic Table of the Elements! I was so excited when I learned that the table isn’t just a list and that chemistry isn’t abstract at all. Not some silly thing my teacher wanted me to memorize. The periodic table explains how things worked and why things work that way.
Atoms and molecules do what they do because of the shapes of their electron orbitals. The table shows the relationships among elements and reflects their actual physical shapes and energy levels. Electron configurations show recurring patterns and periodicity. It really, truly is understandable.
The organization of the periodic table can be used to derive relationships between the various element properties, and also to predict chemical properties and behaviours of undiscovered or newly synthesized elements. Wikipedia
Yes – early chemists left gaps in the table where it seemed that elements should exist, and sure enough! Those elements were later identified.
Exactly how a single anniversary is determined is debatable. Nascent scientists played around with how to display their growing knowledge of chemistry throughout the late 1800s, but Russian chemistry professor Dmitri Mendeleev came up with the best version and published in 1869.
[image error]Since then, the periodic table has been displayed in different manners with various amounts of data added to each element’s box. I once read a book that proposed a 3D representation like a mountain range. Shoot, now I can’t find the book. But the table endurs and will continue to be used because it’s a map to how reality works. Congrats Dmitri, and Thank You.
