The Periodic Table: A

History

Helpful for the musically-inclined: a literal illustration of Newlands

law of octaves.
In 1864, an English scientist named John Newlands put forward a
law of octaves. As the name suggested, it involved the
arrangement of all the known atoms (at the time) into chunks of
eight. He originally put the elements in order of atomic mass, until
he realised that each element was similar to the one eight along.
Dmitri Mendeleev, another scientist, later expanded on Newlands
law of octaves. He proposed the idea of grouping elements, in
periods, according to their properties. Mendeleev created the first
periodic table.

The earliest example of the familiar table we see everyday.

Facts/features of the modern periodic table:

The elements that have similar physical and chemical properties are
found in vertical columns
The vertical columns are called groups.
The groups are numbered from 1 to 8.
The horizontal rows are called periods.
The period that contains only H and He has the number 1.
The properties of the elements divide the periodic table in areas
that are marked with different colours (e.g. metals, non-metals
and metalloids)
Metalloids (also known as semimetals) are located to the boundary

between metals and non-metals, as they are between both

The elements located to the left end of the period are metals. The
elements on the right are non-metals.

Group 1: The Alkali Metals

Alkali metals are the chemical elements found in Group 1 of the
periodic table. The alkali metals include lithium (Li), sodium (Na),
potassium (K), etc.
Hydrogen, though listed in Group 1 due to its electron configuration,
is not included in the alkali metals since it rarely behaves in the
same way as the other metals. These particular elements react with
water to form hydroxide ions, creating basic solutions (pH>7), which
are also alkaline solutions.
Alkali metals are among the most reactive metals. The further down
the group you go, the more reactive the metal. They tend to transfer
their electrons in reactions (ionic). These metals are characterized
by their soft texture and silver color. They also have low boiling and
melting points and are less dense than most elements. For example,
lithium, sodium, and potassium float on water because of their low
density. All these characteristics can be attributed to their weak
bonds. All of the alkali metals are found naturally in nature, but not
in their pure forms. Their ores have to be extracted.

Transition metals
The transition metals are a group of elements within the periodic
table. They make up the largest section, including columns 3-12.
Examples of these transition elements are titanium (Ti), copper (Cu),
nickel (Ni), silver (Ag), platinum (Pt), and gold (Au).

Transition metals usually have high melting and boiling points, due
to their metallic structure. This also means they have delocalised
electrons, and can carry a charge, and conduct electricity. They also
have high densities. They would not float on water.

Group 7: The Halogens

The halogens form Group 7 of the periodic table of elements. This
halogen family consists of five elements: fluorine (F), chlorine (Cl),
bromine (Br), iodine (I), and astatine (At). The applications of
halogens are many and varied.
Electron configuration is one of the ways halogens can be defined:
all have seven electrons in their outer shells. All members of the
halogen family have the same electron configurations, and so tend
to bond in the same way. These are reactive, with fluorine being the
most.
The halogens have much in common. One of the first things
scientists noticed about these five elements is the fact that they
tend to form salts, as the result of bonding between an acid and a
base. All of the halogens are highly reactive, and will combine
directly with almost all elements.
Due to this high level of reactivity, the halogens are almost never
found in pure form. They have to be extracted, though they are
sometimes very dangerous.
Georgia Wowk