History of Atomic Energy

By geoff_w
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    The History of Atomic Energy

  • New-Found Evidence

    J.J. Thompson finds evidence that atoms are composed of smaller pieces by discovering electrons;

  • New Radioactive Elements

    Marie Curie discovers radioactive elements (radium and polonium).

  • A New Model

    A New Model
    Rutherford and Bohr come up with a model of the atom. The Rutherford-Bohr model consists of electrons surrounding a highly concentrated center, the nucleus.
    …later Rutherford discovers positively charged particles in the nucleus (protons) through what is known as the first nuclear reaction.

  • The Neutron

    Neutrons are discovered by James Chadwick.
    Many other scientists, such as Cockcroft and Walton, began experimenting with the bombarding of protons at neutrons. These scientists realized that mass had been converted into energy but they didn’t predict they could harvest this energy.

  • A Chain Reaction

    Leo Szilard files the first patent for producing a chain reaction (nuclear explosion).