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Atom Dbq

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Our image of an atom has changed throughout history. The atom is the smallest unit to make all matter. Every solid, liquid and even gas has matter composed of atoms. Many people have contributed to our understanding of atoms that dates back to as far as Ancient Greece. That goes to show how much work scientists have put in to help us unlock more doors to life. The understanding of the structure of atoms has changed throughout history.
The first documented case of the discovery of atoms dates back to 450 B.C with two Greek philosophers, Leucippus and Democritus (Doc. 1). This was only a theory; however, they proposed the idea that all matter is made up of atoms. Then in 1661, Irish chemist Robert Boyle supported the philosophers’ theory of how chemical elements are made up of the simplest matter, backing the theory of how matter makes up all life and is the smallest living thing (Doc. 1). But a bombshell happened in 1803 when John Dalton backed up all three theories by discovering that atoms make up all matter, and chemical compounds are made of atoms (OI). …show more content…

By firing massively charged particles at an atom, he found that atoms are made up of smaller particles (Doc. 1). This would lead to his discovery of protons also known as alpha particles (OI). After that, he bombarded gold foil and observed that some of the atoms passed through the foil. Therefore, he concluded that atoms are composed of empty space (OI). According to DePra’s poem, “The electron is minus, the proton is plus,/ the neutron is neither” (Doc. 2). In other words, a neutron is neutral, the electron is negative and the proton is positive. After these discoveries, more inventions were made to help further our understanding of atoms, for instance, the the electron microscope. Electrons were discovered before Rutherford by JJ Thomas (OI). Thomas was using a cathode ray and discovered that atoms are made of smaller subatomic particles

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