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True About Subatomic Particles? Practice Quiz
Test your knowledge with exam-style questions
This subatomic particles quiz helps you check facts about protons, neutrons, and electrons by choosing the one true statement in each question. Use it to spot gaps before a Grade 10 exam. Work through 20 short items at your own pace.
Study Outcomes
- Understand the fundamental properties and characteristics of subatomic particles.
- Analyze the structure and interactions within atoms at the subatomic level.
- Apply quantum concepts to explain particle behavior in various scenarios.
- Evaluate experimental evidence supporting theories in particle physics.
- Synthesize knowledge of particle interactions to solve related physics problems.
Quiz: Which Is True? Subatomic Particles Cheat Sheet
- Subatomic Particles 101 - Ever wondered what makes up an atom? Meet protons (positively charged partygoers in the nucleus), neutrons (the chill neutral neighbors), and electrons (the speedy negative dancers orbiting around).
- Atomic Number Magic - The atomic number is your element's unique ID card, equal to the number of protons in its nucleus. Change the proton count and you change the element - carbon's card says "6," so it always rocks six protons!
- Mass Number Matters - Add up protons and neutrons and you get the mass number, which tells you how heavy the nucleus is. Want to find neutrons? Just subtract the atomic number from the mass number and voilà!
- Isotopes: Same but Different - Isotopes are like twins with different weights; they share the same proton count but have extra or fewer neutrons. For example, carbon-12 and carbon-14 are carbon cousins with different mass numbers.
- Ions: Charged Up Atoms - When atoms lose or gain electrons, they become ions with a net charge - think of sodium kicking out an electron to become Na❺. These charged atoms are key players in everything from crystal salt to electric currents.
- The Mighty Nucleus - The nucleus is super dense and holds most of an atom's mass, while electrons zoom in the surrounding space, defining the atom's volume. Imagine a marble (nucleus) in a stadium (electron cloud)!
- Weighty Comparisons - Electrons are featherweights compared to protons and neutrons - about 1/1,836th the mass of a proton! Despite their tiny mass, electrons play a huge role in chemistry and electricity.
- Neutron Discovery - In 1932, James Chadwick uncovered the neutron, filling in the missing puzzle piece of atomic structure and explaining why isotopes exist. This breakthrough reshaped nuclear science forever!
- Electron Unveiled - J.J. Thomson's cathode ray experiments in 1897 revealed the electron, proving atoms are divisible into smaller parts. This tiny particle's discovery kicked off modern atomic theory!
- Proton and the Nucleus - Ernest Rutherford's famous gold foil experiment in 1919 not only spotted the proton but also uncovered the compact nucleus at an atom's core. Talk about a golden moment in science!