Remember Your Chemistry Classes?

An international team of researchers recently reported creation of a new element that is 40

percent heavier than lead.
The researchers successfully developed what they are calling Element Number 117 at a
laboratory in Germany. It is identified by that number because its nucleus contains that same
number of particles --called protons. Element Number 117 has a temporary name --
ununseptium.
If you remember your chemistry classes in school, you will recall that about 90 elements in the
Periodic Table are found in nature. But others that were created in laboratories appear only in
very small amounts.
The Periodic Table lines up -- or organizes -- chemical elements in order of atomic number. The
elements made in laboratories -- such as 117 -- are extremely unstable. They last only minutes
before breaking down into long-lasting elements.
Creation of new elements helps scientists better-understand the chemistry and physics of
atoms. But such production may also lead to the discovery of new technologies.
Russian and other scientists had reported the creation of Element 117 in 2010. But the group
that confirms new elements requires at least two successful independent experiments to
confirm their existence. That group -- the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry --
will give the element a permanent name.
A report on the new element appears in the journal Physical Review Letters.
This story was narrated by Anna Matteo and Christopher Cruise. It was written in Special
English by Jerilyn Watson from a story by VOA reporter George Putic in Washington.