VIDEO: MODELING THE ATOM, PART 1 (ATOMIC MODELS AND LIGHT)

This VIDEO is based on section 4.1 and 4.2 of the text used by Mr. Hatfield's students. It rreviews the 'building blocks' (protons, electrons and neutrons) that make up atomic structure in current models:

The video then challenges students to understand the experimental evidence justifying these subatomic particles with famous experiments, like the electrolysis of water, Rutherford's gold foil experiment and the Bohr model which provides an explanation for atomic emission spectra.

The goal of this approach is that students develop an understanding of how models of the atom evolved in response to new scientific findings. Unlike ancient philosophers, who merely attempted to persuade others that their ideas were appealing, scientists must always subject their ideas (no matter how clever, beautiful or beloved) to the 'test of nature': experiment!