Metals are elements that are good conductors of electricity. They are the largest of the three classes of elements. In fact, most elements are metals. Look back at the modern periodic table (Figure 6.3) in this chapters lesson "How Elements Are Organized." Find the metals in the table. They are all the elements that are color-coded blue. Examples include sodium (Na), silver (Ag), and zinc (Zn). Metals have relatively high melting points, so almost all are solids at room temperature. The only exception is mercury (Hg), which is a liquid. Most metals are also good conductors of heat. Thats why they are used for cooking pots and stovetops. Metals have other characteristic properties as well. Most are shiny, ductile, and malleable. These properties are illustrated in Figure 6.5. You can dig deeper into the properties of metals at this URL: Nonmetals are elements that do not conduct electricity. They are the second largest class of elements. Find the nonmetals in Figure 6.3. They are all the elements on the right side of the table that are color-coded green. Examples of nonmetals include helium (He), carbon (C), and oxygen (O). Nonmetals generally have properties that are the opposite of those of metals. They also tend to vary more in their properties than metals do. For example, nonmetals have relatively low boiling points, so many of them are gases at room temperature. But several nonmetals are solids, including carbon and phosphorus (P). One nonmetal, bromine (Br), is a liquid at room temperature. Generally, nonmetals are also poor conductors of heat. In fact, they may be used for insulation. For example, the down filling in a down jacket is mostly air, which consists mainly of nitrogen (N) and oxygen (O). These nonmetal gases are poor conductors of heat, so they keep body heat in and cold air out. Solid nonmetals are dull rather than shiny. They are also brittle rather than ductile or malleable. You can see examples of solid nonmetals in Figure 6.6. You can learn more about specific nonmetals with the interactive table at this URL: [Link] Metalloids are elements that fall between metals and nonmetals in the periodic table. Just seven elements are metalloids, so they are the smallest class of elements. In Figure 6.3, they are color-coded orange. Examples of metalloids include boron (B), silicon (Si), and germanium (Ge). Metalloids have some properties of metals and some properties of nonmetals. For example, many metalloids can conduct electricity but only at certain temperatures. These metalloids are called semiconductors. Silicon is an example. It is used in computer chips. It is also the most common metalloid on Earth. It is shiny like a metal but brittle like a nonmetal. You see a sample of silicon in Figure 6.7. The figure also shows other examples of metalloids. You can learn more about the properties of metalloids at this URL: [Link] From left to right across the periodic table, each element has one more proton than the element to its left. Because atoms are always electrically neutral, for each added proton, one electron is also added. Electrons are added first to the lowest energy level possible until that level is full. Only then are electrons added to the next higher energy level. The increase in electrons across the periodic table explains why elements go from metals to metalloids and then to nonmetals from left to right across the table. Look at period 2 in Figure 6.8 as an example. Lithium (Li) is a metal, boron (B) a metalloid, and fluorine (F) and neon (Ne) are nonmetals. The inner energy level is full for all four elements. This level has just one orbital and can hold a maximum of two electrons. The outer energy level is a different story. This level has four orbitals and can hold a maximum of eight electrons. Lithium has just one electron in this level, boron has three, fluorine has seven, and neon has eight. The
Output: word that describes most metals