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Scientific Investigation and Atomic Structure

7 dot points across 7 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How are electrons arranged in an atom, and why do valence electrons control chemistry?

Electron configuration and energy levels: describe how electrons occupy energy levels, write electron configurations, identify valence electrons, and relate ground and excited states to spectra.
A focused Virginia SOL Chemistry answer on electron arrangement under CH.2: energy levels and sublevels, writing electron configurations, counting valence electrons, and the difference between ground state and excited state and how it produces line spectra.
9 min answer →

Why is the atomic mass on the periodic table almost never a whole number?

Isotopes and average atomic mass: define isotopes, write nuclide notation, and calculate the weighted average atomic mass of an element from its isotopes.
A focused Virginia SOL Chemistry answer on isotopes under CH.2: what isotopes are, how to read nuclide notation, and how to calculate the weighted average atomic mass of an element from the masses and natural abundances of its isotopes.
9 min answer →

How do significant figures and unit conversions keep a chemistry calculation honest?

Measurement, significant figures and dimensional analysis: use SI units, significant figures and scientific notation, convert units by dimensional analysis, and calculate density and percent error.
A focused Virginia SOL Chemistry answer on measurement under CH.1: SI units, the rules for significant figures, scientific notation, converting units by dimensional analysis (factor-label), and calculating density and percent error.
10 min answer →

How do unstable nuclei decay, and how is the time for decay measured?

Nuclear chemistry and radioactivity: describe alpha, beta and gamma decay, balance nuclear equations, distinguish fission from fusion, and use half-life.
A focused Virginia SOL Chemistry answer on nuclear processes under CH.2: alpha, beta and gamma decay, balancing nuclear equations, the difference between fission and fusion, and using half-life to find how much of a sample remains.
9 min answer →

How does a chemist design a fair investigation and judge whether data are trustworthy?

Scientific investigation and experimental design: plan and conduct safe investigations, identify independent, dependent and controlled variables, and distinguish hypothesis, theory and law.
A focused Virginia SOL Chemistry answer on standard CH.1: planning a safe, fair investigation, identifying independent, dependent and controlled variables, the difference between accuracy and precision, and how hypothesis, theory and law differ in science.
9 min answer →

What is inside an atom, and how do protons, neutrons and electrons define an element?

Structure of the atom: describe protons, neutrons and electrons, atomic number and mass number, and the historical development of the atomic model from Dalton to the modern view.
A focused Virginia SOL Chemistry answer on standard CH.2: the subatomic particles, atomic number and mass number, how they define an element and its ions, and the development of the atomic model from Dalton, Thomson and Rutherford to Bohr and the modern model.
9 min answer →

How is the periodic table organized, and how do atomic properties change across it?

The periodic table and periodic trends: describe the organization of the periodic table and the trends in atomic radius, ionization energy, electronegativity and reactivity across periods and down groups.
A focused Virginia SOL Chemistry answer on the periodic table under CH.2: how it is organized into groups, periods, metals, nonmetals and metalloids, and the trends in atomic radius, ionization energy, electronegativity and reactivity and why each runs the way it does.
10 min answer →