Chemical element
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A chemical element is a species of atom defined by its number of protons. The number of protons is called the atomic number of that element. For example, oxygen has an atomic number of 8: each oxygen
Metals (blue) and metalloids (green) in the periodic table
John Dalton's list of atomic weights & symbols, 1808
Estimated distribution of dark matter and dark energy in the universe. Only the fraction of the mass and energy labeled "atoms" is composed of elements.
Robert Boyle, c. 1740
Nitrogen
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Nitrogen is a chemical element; it has symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common eleme
Liquid nitrogen (N2 at below −196 °C)
Daniel Rutherford, discoverer of nitrogen
Molecular orbital diagram of dinitrogen molecule, N2. There are five bonding orbitals and two antibonding orbitals (marked with an asterisk; orbitals involving the inner 1s electrons not shown), giving a total bond order of three.
Nitrogen trichloride