Science Ace ProjectElements inspired by famous people

By: Eric Seow(8)Class: 1P1

Periodic Table: Man-made elementsThere are many elements. Among them are synthetically prepared (man-made) elements, which are possible because of the Nuclear Age. They include:

61 promethium (Pm)93 neptunium (Np)94 plutonium (Pu)95 americium (Am)96 curium (Cm)97 berkelim (Bk)102 nobelium (No)103 lawrencium (Lr)43 technetium (Tc)99 einsteinium (Es)100 Fermium (Fm)

Four of them are very special… Famous scientists inspired the following:1. Curium Cm• Made in 1944 in Chicago. It was named in honour of Marie

and Pierre Curie.

2. Einsteinium Es• Made in 1952 at the University of California. It was named in

honour of Albert Einstein.

Four of them are very special… 3. Lawrencium Lw• The majority of man-made elements were made at the

University of California USA, in a machine called the Cyclotron. The Cyclotron was invented by Professor Ernest Lawrence. Lawrencium was made at the University of California in 1961 and named in his honour.

4. Mendelevium Md• Made in 1955 at the University of California. It was named

after a world famous Russian Chemist Dimitri Mendeleev.

Just who are these famous scientists?

Marie Curie• Background:

- Born Maria Skłodowska in Warsaw- Obtained her higher degrees and conducted her subsequent scientific work in Paris.

• Achievements:- A pioneer in the field of radioactivity and the first person honored with two Nobel Prizes - in physics and chemistry. - Created a theory of radioactivity, techniques for isolating radioactive isotopes, and discovered two new elements, polonium and radium.

Pierre Curie• Background:

- Born in Paris, educated by his father.- In his early teens, showed a strong aptitude for mathematics and geometry. - By 18, he had completed the equivalent of a higher degree, but did not proceed immediately to a doctorate due to lack of money. Instead, he worked as a laboratory instructor.

• Achievements:- A pioneer in crystallogaphy, netism, piezoelectricity and radioactivity, and Nobel laureate. - In 1903, received the Nobel Prize In Physics with his wife, Marie Curie, and Henri Becquerel.

Albert Einstein • Background:

- Born in Germany in 1879 and at 17, renounced his German citizenship to avoid military service.- Enrolled in 1896 at the Polytechnic of Zurich. - Widely regarded as one of the most influential scientists and intellectuals of all time, and the father of modern physics. 

• Achievements:- Special and general theories of relativity.- Predicted the deflection of light by gravity and gravitational lensing.- Explained the Brownian movement of molecules. - Published more than 150 non-scientific works. 

Ernest Lawrence • Background:

- Born in South Dakota, and attended St. Olaf College in Minnesota.- Completed his Ph.D. degree in physics in 1925, making him somewhat unusual in his field —a very promising young physical scientist who had received his entire education in the United States. 

• Achievements:- Invented and used the cyclotron atom-smasher beginning in 1929.- In 1939, awarded the Nobel Prize In Physics for his work in inventing the cyclotron and developing its applications. - First recipient of the Sylvanus Thayer Award. 

Dmitri Mendeleev• Background:

- Born in Russia, thought to be the youngest of 14 siblings. - At the age of 13, after the passing of his father and the destruction of his mother's factory by fire, Mendeleev attended the Gymnasium in Tobolsk.- In 1849, the now poor Mendeleev family relocated to Saint Petersburg, where he entered the Main Pedagogical Institute in 1850.

• Background:- Created the first version of the periodic table of elements. Using the table, he predicted the properties of elements yet to be discovered.

What do these elements do?

Curium• A synthetic chemical element with the symbol Cm and atomic

number 96. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal that tarnishes slowly in dry air at room temperature.

• The Curium isotopes 244Cm and 242Cm are useful for applications as alpha particle source and as heat generator in radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTG).

• A 244Curium source is used for the Alpha Particle X-Ray  on board several American and European space missions, for example the Mars Exploration and the Rosetta/Philae. The use in RTG is proposed for several future space missions.

Einsteinium• A metallic synthetic element. On the periodic

table, it is represented by the symbol Es and atomic number 99.

• Its position on the periodic table indicates that its chemical and physical properties are similar to other metals. Though only small amounts have been made, it has been determined to be silver-coloured. 

• Like all synthetic elements, isotopes of einsteinium are extremely radioactive, and are considered highly toxic.

• Aside from basic scientific research (such as being a step in the production of other elements), einsteinium has no known uses.

Lawrencium• A radioactive synthetic element with the

symbol Lr (formerly Lw) and atomic number 103.• If sufficient amounts of lawrencium were produced, it would

pose a serious radiation hazard.

Mendelevium• A synthetic element with the symbol Md (formerly Mv) and

the atomic number 101.• Since only small amounts of mendelevium have ever been

produced, it currently has no uses outside of basic scientific research.

References

• http://www.science-park.info/periodic/• http://

www.lenntech.com/periodic/periodic-chart.htm

• http://www.famous-scientists.net/• http://www.science.co.il/ptelements.asp