Which of the following statements are true? Select all answers.
There are more than 100 different types of elements known.
An atom is the smallest part of an element that can exist on its own.
Not all elements can be found naturally on earth.
An element consists of more than one type of atom.
The true statements are:
- An atom is the smallest part of an element that can exist on its own.
- Not all elements can be found naturally on earth.
The statements that are true are:
1. There are more than 100 different types of elements known.
2. An atom is the smallest part of an element that can exist on its own.
3. Not all elements can be found naturally on earth.
To determine which of the statements are true, let's go through each statement one by one.
1. There are more than 100 different types of elements known.
To verify this statement, we can refer to the periodic table, which lists all the known elements. Currently, there are 118 confirmed elements. Since 118 is greater than 100, the statement is true.
2. An atom is the smallest part of an element that can exist on its own.
This statement is true. An atom is the smallest unit of matter that retains the properties of an element. It cannot be further divided into smaller particles and still be recognized as that element.
3. Not all elements can be found naturally on Earth.
To check the validity of this statement, we need to know if all elements occur naturally on Earth. While many elements are indeed found naturally, some elements have only been produced artificially in laboratories. Examples include technetium and plutonium. Therefore, the statement is true.
4. An element consists of more than one type of atom.
This statement is false. An element is defined as a substance composed of only one type of atom. Each element has its unique atomic number, which corresponds to the number of protons in the nucleus of its atoms. So, an element consists of only one type of atom.
In summary, the true statements are:
- There are more than 100 different types of elements known.
- An atom is the smallest part of an element that can exist on its own.
- Not all elements can be found naturally on Earth.