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Periodic Table of Elements To Get an Update
Lazarian writes "Scientists from around the world have put forth an update to the Periodic Table of Elements. In particular, they are changing the manner in which atomic weights of ten elements are expressed. From the article: 'For example, sulfur is commonly known to have a standard atomic weight of 32.065. However, its actual atomic weight can be anywhere between 32.059 and 32.076, depending on where the element is found.'"
Sulfur has an atomic weight of 32. Anything more is for commies.
Again?.
To summarise the summary of the summary: people are a problem. ~ h2g2
Atomic weight depends on the number of neutrons, which determines the isotope. Isotopes may be found with different frequencies in different environments, but this is a far cry from saying that atomic weight changes based on the location of the atom.
not really, if it's a problem now, it was then too since these weights didn't magically change. Really, it doesn't terribly matter much as it is, the discrepancy is tiny and for most molecules, largely irrelevant. For any calculation that really reall matters, you won't be using the range on the table, you'd be measuring the isotope ratio in your sample and for times when it doesn't, well, that's self explanatory.
Sigs are too short to say anything truly profound so read the above post instead.
Ok, IANAC but... I thought an atomic mass was an approximation based upon the masses of the most common isotypes weighted based upon how frequently they occur in nature... no?
While we're at it, maybe this is a good time for you colonials to finally learn how to spell?
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
Chemistry students don't need this many significant figures. Last time I took classes in that, I remember using about 4 significant figures (2 after the decimal) for everything.
The hard part of any problem in science is solving it : performing the calculations with any arbitrary number of significant figures is trivial.
And for real world uses, the atomic weight of an element is going to depend on exactly what ore you are using of that element. If your problem is affected by significant figures this far to the right of the decimal, you probably need data on exactly what you are working with.
While we're at it, maybe this is a good time for you colonials to finally learn how to spell?
That's "colonists" to you, pal. Er, chap. Whats new in the world of cricket?
Just as soon as you guys learn how to cook.
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
So they've decided to indicate isotopic variation on the periodic table? Is that really big news?
-Styopa
Re:Aluminium. Sulphur.
While we're at it, maybe this is a good time for you colonials to finally learn how to spell?
Okay, I'll feed the troll.
The name originates from the Latin word 'sulfur' and Middle English 'sulfre' meaning brimstone. [cite]
On the other hand, the other word is a bit more blurry as to who "wins"
...In 1807, Davy proposed the name alumium for the metal, undiscovered at that time, and later agreed to change it to aluminum.
Shortly thereafter, the name aluminium was adopted by IUPAC to conform with the "ium" ending of most elements. Aluminium is the IUPAC spelling and therefore the international standard.
Aluminium was also the accepted spelling in the U.S.A. until 1925, at which time the American Chemical Society decided to revert back to aluminum, and to this day Americans still refer to aluminium as "aluminum".
[cite]
I only post comments when someone on the internet is wrong.
Whenever I'm doing chemistry under a time constraint, it's multiple choice, and I just use the number of nuclides, atomic weight be darned.
Well, England were on for a whitewash but Australia seem to have made a sudden comeback and we may have a real fight on our hands for the Ashes after all.
Cricket is stupid.
That brings me to an interesting point, / . is just "the ramblings of socially-inept, technology-literate news-mongers".
Just as soon as you guys get dentists.
That brings me to an interesting point, / . is just "the ramblings of socially-inept, technology-literate news-mongers".
And for the saxon dogs to stop calling Wolfram "Tungsten". Schweinerei!
I know I weigh less in the buffet line than on the scale.
One gripe I have about the IUPAC's insistence on -ium for aluminium is that they break that convention for elements like tantalum, platinum, molybdenum, and lanthanum. Y'know, if they really, REALLY wanted to be consistent, they'd rename those tantalium, platinium, molybdenium, and lanthanium.
Of course, I can't complain too hard, as the ACS used "aluminium" until they changed their minds...
"We are Microsoft. You shall be assimilated. Competition is futile."
This dupe was totally periodictable.
Set your phasers on "funky"!
You lot have cheese in a can. I rest my case.
You might have known that but your ability to comprehend what you read has a lot of room for improvement.
You don't need to RTFA (which includes sections like "Professor H. Roy Krouse created the Stable Isotope Laboratory in the Department of Physics and Astronomy in 1971. Early work by Krouse established the wide natural range in the atomic weight of significant elements including carbon and sulfur" that say exactly what you did - except, of course, with more detail). You barely need to RTFS, which includes "In particular, they are changing the manner in which atomic weights of ten elements are expressed.". Even reading the f'ing title gives a hint that it is the table itself that is getting the update.
This isn't news about the fact that the elements vary in atomic mass. This is news about the fact that they're now modifying the actual periodic table of elements to take that into account.
*sigh* Usually I stay quiet when someone says "Why is this news? We already knew that [description of something completely irrelevant]" but it's just infuriating to see that happen when you don't even need to RTFA...
don't be such a pernickety scallywag over the titbit of difference. I just wanted to type the UK variants of scalawag and persnickety and tidbit.
If atomic weight weren't dimensionless you would be measuring it in ounces, but it would be slightly different values of ounce for both sides of the pond. Shame on you!
"The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) adopted aluminium as the standard international name for the element in 1990, but three years later recognized aluminum as an acceptable variant. Hence their periodic table includes both.[58] IUPAC prefers the use of aluminium in its internal publications, although nearly as many IUPAC publications use the spelling aluminum." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aluminium
The real reason is so we can now have sponsored elements. For example:
Nitrogen, brought to you by Air Liquide!
and
Gold, from Kitco. And now a word from Glen Beck on why you should by your gold from us!
Learning HOW to think is more important than learning WHAT to think.
They probably did that because it fit their Fahrenheits and their miles better.
-- Cheers!
Maybe they downgraded it.
In Latin, the word is variously written sulpur, sulphur, and sulfur (the Oxford Latin Dictionary lists the spellings in this order).
Just going by this, 'sulfur' was not the universally accepted way to spell it in Latin. Either way, how it was spelt in latin (or greek) has no relevance of what is 'correct'.
However, IUPAC adopted the spelling sulfur in 1990, as did the Royal Society of Chemistry Nomenclature Committee in 1992.
But the international and British standards bodies recommend using sulfur anyway.
From Wikipedia article.
"...you colonials to finally learn how to spell?"
When I see all articles from you folks of the old continent spelled right and grammatically correct. By the way, which english version are we using? The Queens English handheld reference or the American English weightlifter edition. Spelling and grammar are irrelevant if the message is understood by those intended to receive said message.
Kill all overbearing spelling and grammar checkers.(heil!)
...or they could rename them farther from 'ium'.
In French those elements are spelled tantale, platine, molybdene, and lanthane.
Just as I was thinking, "America--Fuck Yeah!," I realized we have Cheeze Whiz. And we also have it in a "Light" version. Sigh.
What one fool can do, another can. (Ancient Simian Proverb)
No most Americans refer to aluminum as tin foil.
Cheez-whiz isn't food, it's a 'food product'. Thus, it is more along the lines of industrial chemicals and probably should be vetted by the EPA (but that's another story).
No, we're talking about 'cooking'. Putting presumably edible materials together in a manner that makes them palatable and nutritious. British cooking, while I will reserve judgment about nutrition (boiling vegetables until the lose all consistency can't be good for nutritional value), can certainly be faulted for palatability (Haggis, various 'pies'). I have been told that there are examples of excellent British cooking and recipes. I guess I just haven't seen it (coming from someone who has lived with British women on two different occasions).
And don't get me started on British automobiles....
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
Charles M. Hall, inventor of the electrolytic extraction method of producing the metal, used the -um suffix to reflect the fact that at the time, aluminum was a precious metal and wanted it to sound more like platinum. The Washington Monument has a pyramidal cap of aluminum, At that time aluminum was $1.00 per avoirdupois ounce. For perspective, silver was $1.30 per troy ounce ($1.18 per avoirdupois ounce); 100 ounces (about 2.8 kg) of aluminum were needed to produce the pyramid.
I have a distinct feeling I've heard about thisrecently.
So what does this have to say about the accuracy of the International Prototype Kilogram and its various copies?
"It's the height of ridiculousness to say for those 9 lines you get hundreds of millions."
Wow, a completely truthful, serious explanation of what's new in the world of cricket and it's been modded +4 Funny. Maybe it is a silly game after all. Of course, TRWTF is being beaten at a game by the very people we colonised so that we'd have someone to play against.
You raise an interesting point, but since Frenchmen are indistinguishable from monkeys, I'm not sure that counts. ;)
"I saw a tramp smoking a fag the other day"
Quite impressive the amount of misunderstanding that could come from such a short sentence, right? An English tramp of course, is an American bum. But an American tramp is an English slut. An English bum is an American fanny. And a fag as you should know, is of course a cigarette.) * Couldn't care less, really, if there's one thing you get right. Please, make it this.
Cheeze-Wiz is AWESOME! AMERICA FU-U-U-CK YEAH! You sir have been brainwashed by the Organo-terro-lesbo-femo-nazis! CHEEZE-WIZ FUCK YEAH!
Don't even get me started on the wonders of EAZY-CHEEZE! Cheezy Deliciousness in a spray can! AMERICA, FUCK YEAH!
"I saw a tramp smoking a fag the other day"
Even better if you throw in the slang "cock-smoking."
Unity? Screw that: XFCE. Slashdot Beta? Screw that: SoylentNews. Australis? Screw that: Pale Moon. UX developers DIAF
An English bum is an American fanny.
And you don't want to know what an Australian fanny is.
I'm using the one where names of countries and words derived from them are capitalized, and possessive nouns have an apostrophe.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
We fixed that; our language is confusing enough as is.
"The Yanks And The Brits Are Divided By A Common Language"
I listen to both RIAA and non-RIAA stuff if I like the music, tangential business/politics nonwithstanding.
Oh great. It's tough enough for my introductory chem students to learn how to calculate the atomic mass of a molecule from its empirical formula when all the masses on the periodic table are single scalars. Using ranges for masses requires that they now have to add truncation, rounding, averaging, or some sort of consistent choosing to that process. They're screwed. And so is anyone who has to grade their papers (i.e., me).
Maybe it is a silly game after all.
Of course it's a silly game. That's sort of the whole point.
Cheez-whiz isn't food, it's a 'food product'. Thus, it is more along the lines of industrial chemicals and probably should be vetted by the EPA (but that's another story).
Cheez Whiz - something even my dogs won't eat. And dogs will eat baby diapers and "treats" from the kitty litter box. And yet parents will feed it to their kids.
Announcer: First prize is a year's supply of Cheeze Whiz.
Contestant: What's second prize?
Announcer: TWO year's supply of Cheeze Whiz.
-- Barbie
Current atomic weights are based upon the weighted average of the atomic weight of the isotope against it's abundance. Everyone who knows anything about the periodic table knows that these numbers are not absolute.
And don't get me started on British automobiles....
What's wrong with Bentleys? Or Rolls-Royces? Or Jaguars? Or Land Rovers? What about Lotus?
There are more, too.
I think it bothers you because we've out Englished the English. We'll do what we want.
He said British. Bentley are German (VW). Rolls Royce are German (BMW). Jaguar are Indian (Tata), as are Land Rover.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
How about lithum, calcum, potassum, uranum...
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
You mean their owners are. In most cases they are subsidiaries rather than brands, and in all cases their actual factories are in the UK. They don't make knock-offs of foreign designs (like Vauxhall vs Opel). They may not be all-British, but it's hard to argue that they're not British.