All matter is composed of atoms, the smallest individual units of elements. Each atom is made up of three subatomic particles: protons, neutrons, and electrons. Together, these three particles account for the mass and the charge of an atom.The History of Atomic TheoryThe first person to propose that everything on Earth is made up of tiny particles was the Greek philosopher Democritus, around 450 B.C. He used the term atomos, Greek for “indivisible,” from which the modern term “atom” is derived.

Many heavier elements with smaller binding energies per nucleon can decompose into more stable elements that have intermediate mass numbers and larger binding energies per nucleon—that is, mass numbers and binding energies per nucleon that are closer to the “peak” of the binding energy graph near 56. Sometimes neutrons are also produced. This decomposition of a large nucleus into smaller pieces is called fission. The breaking is rather random with the formation of a large number of different...

Nuclear reprogramming is the process of switching gene expression of one cell type to that of another cell type, usually from a differentiated cell state to an undifferentiated cell state. Differentiation occurs during processes such as development and morphogenesis, tissue regeneration, and malignancy. Cells can also be artificially induced to reprogram their gene expression by techniques such as nuclear transfer, induced pluripotency, and cell fusion. Such techniques have many applications in...

Critical thinking is a cognitive process with several attributes. The attributes of critical thinking include the following:

The nursing process is the core of practice for every registered nurse to deliver holistic, patient-focused care. The following are the five steps in the nursing process.

The Greek philosopher Democritus proposed that everything on Earth is made up of tiny particles called atomos, Greek for "indivisible," from which the modern term "atom" is derived. In the 19th century, John Dalton proposed the atomic theory that is still largely correct today. He put forth five postulates to explain how atoms made up the world around us. (1) All matter is composed of infinitely small particles or atoms. (2) All atoms of a given element are identical to one another and (3) are...