Atoms are the basic building blocks of ordinary matter. Atoms can join together to form molecules, which in turn form most of the objects around you.
Atoms are composed of particles called protons, electrons and neutrons. Protons carry a positive electrical charge, electrons carry a negative electrical charge and neutrons carry no electrical charge at all. The protons and neutrons cluster together in the central part of the atom, called the nucleus, and the electrons 'orbit' the nucleus. A particular atom will have the same number of protons and electrons and most atoms have at least as many neutrons as protons.
Protons and neutrons are both composed of other particles called quarks and gluons. Protons contain two 'up' quarks and one 'down' quark while neutrons contain one 'up' quark and two 'down' quarks. The gluons are responsible for binding the quarks to one another.
Where do atoms get their energy from?
If an atom is in constant random motion that means that all atoms have kinetic energy, but according to law of conservation of energy: energy cannot be created or destroyed just tranferred into one form from another. So that means atoms are getting energy from something
An atom is the smallest possible amount of a chemical element—so an atom of gold is the smallest amount of gold you can possibly have. By small, I really do mean absolutely, nanoscopically tiny: a single atom is about 100,000 times thinner than a human hair, so you have absolutely no chance of ever seeing one unless you have an incredibly powerful electron microscope. In ancient times, people thought atoms were the smallest possible things in the world. In fact, the word atom comes from a Greek word meaning something that cannot be split up any further. Today, we know this isn't true. In theory, if you had a knife small and sharp enough, you could chop an atom of gold into bits and you'd find smaller things inside. But then you'd no longer have the gold: you'd just have the bits. All atoms are made from the same bits, which are called subatomic particles ("sub" means smaller than and these are particles smaller than atoms). So if you chopped up an atom of iron, and put the bits into a pile, and then chopped up an atom of gold, and put those bits into a second pile, you'd have two piles of very similar bits—but there'd be no iron or gold left.
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What is a molecule?
A molecule is the smallest thing and smaller than atom, that a substance can be divided up into, while remaining the same substance. It is made up of two or more atoms held together by chemical bonding. These atoms can be the same kind, or different kinds.
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Where do we find molecules?
Almost everything is made up of molecules, including the air you breathe, the food you eat, and even the water you drink! In the air, oxygen atoms usually travel with a partner (2 x O = O2), as does Hydrogen (2 x H = H2) and Nitrogen (N2). Water (H2O) is made of two Hydrogen atoms (H2) and one Oxygen atom (O). Even regular table salt that you eat is a combination of molecules! Would it surprise you to know that the molecules in table salt are made up of dangerous atoms? You may eat salt every day, but it is made up of an explosive atom (sodium) and a toxic one (chlorine)! The reason salt is safe to eat is because molecules are very different from the atoms that make them up.
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How do the atoms join together?
Atoms come together to form molecules because of their electrons. Electrons can join (or bond) atoms together in two main ways. When two atoms share electrons between them, they are locked together (bonded) by that sharing. These are called covalent bonds. Bonds like this are in oxygen gas, nitrogen gas, and hydrogen gas. But when on atom gives one of its electrons to another atom, they are held together by electric forces. These sorts of bonds are called ionic, because once an atom loses or gains an electron, it becomes something called an ion, which has a positive or negative charge. These sorts of bonds are in acids, like vinegar, and bases, like ammonia. Salt is also held together by ionic bonds. The sodium, usually explosive, loses an electron to the chlorine, which is also dangerous in its natural state, but when this reaction happens, both become harmless and even tasty!
A molecule: is an electrically neutral group of two or more atoms held together by covalent chemical bonds. Molecules are distinguished from ions by their lack of electrical charge. However, in quantum physics, organic chemistry, and biochemistry, the term molecule is often used less strictly, also being applied topolyatomic ions.
In the kinetic theory of gases, the term molecule is often used for any gaseous particle regardless of its composition. According to this definition noble gas atoms are considered molecules despite the fact that they are composed of a single non-bonded atom.
A molecule may consist of atoms of a single chemical element, as with oxygen (O2), or of different elements, as with water (H2O). Atoms and complexes connected by non-covalent bonds such as hydrogen bonds or ionic bonds are generally not considered single molecules.
Molecules as components of matter are common in organic substances (and therefore biochemistry). They also make up most of the oceans and atmosphere. However, the majority of familiar solid substances on Earth, including most of the minerals that make up the crust, mantle, and core of the Earth, contain many chemical bonds, but are not made of identifiable molecules. Also, no typical molecule can be defined for ionic crystals (salts) and covalent crystals (network solids), although these are often composed of repeating unit cells that extend either in a plane (such as in graph ene) or three-dimensionally (such as in diamond, quartz, or sodium chloride). The theme of repeated unit-cellular-structure also holds for most condensed phases with metallic bonding, which means that solid metals are also not made of molecules. In glasses (solids that exist in a vitreous disordered state), atoms may also be held together by chemical bonds without presence of any definable molecule, but also without any of the regularity of repeating units that characterises crystals.
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