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Show STUDY CF THE ELECTRON. Perhaps the greatest contribution to I science of late years came from H. G. J. Mosely, a young Englishman who. Just prior to the war, studied tho electron elec-tron by 'he X-ray and discovered that each element left a distinctive record on his photographic plates Mosely entered the British army in 1914 and was killed. tfosely proved by his X Ru photograph-, thai hydrogen had a single electron, helium two electrons; sodium 111, gold 79, mercurj So, lead S2. rad-jlum rad-jlum SS. and finally, uranium with 92 A writer on this subject makes the I following statement: j Men o' science are no"v awakening J to the fact that that there lies Just I ahead of them one great problem,' ! which, if It can be Bolved, will un-1 IdOUbtedly be the greatest accomplish-; UK-tit of that science since time began. jSlnce elements are made up of elec-,ironr elec-,ironr and since the difference be 'tweeu them lies merely in the number lof electrons which their atoms contain, lit Is obvious that the nature or ele-j tuents is dependent on nothing but ibis arrangement of electrons. If set jence can change the arrangements of J electrons, it can change one of these elements into another. I The mercury light in photographic laboratories is a tube filled with mer iury that has been converted into the form of gas. Through this tube la 1 passed a current of electricity Scientifically, a very peculiar thing is happening within this mercury tube In its gaseous form the atoms 'of this mercury are spread out in .1 jquito flamboyant way. They float about somewhat as do particles of dust In a sunbeam. Each of these atoms of mercttry contains 80 building block 1 electrons. So. there you have it the! mercury atom suspended iu mid-air j with its checkerboard of building , blocks turned face on. Into this sit 1 'uatlon is introduced the currents of 'electricity nnd those currents of elec-1 f l r icily, it must bo remembered, are 1 j sprays of electrons, shot much as are 'the bullets from a machine gun. A great volume of fire is shot through the area where the mercury atoms are suspended target-like. The targets are i being overwhelmingly bombarded. In ,this bombardment certain of the elec-1 jtrons in the mercury atom are hiL j ;When they arc bit the blow is suffi-, jclent to knock them a bit out of place, 1 but not sufficient to entirely dislodge them. The agitation of their displace-, ment and their coming back into posl-1 t I f ,1, nr.. Inn Ti.hlr.il J 1 1 u r tho I gri on light in tho mercury tube. Were the blow which the mercury electron j receives sufficient to entirely dislodge it from its atom it would remain an atom constituted of 79 electrons in stead of 80 electrons, and that atom would be an atom of gold and not of mercury. Transmutation would ac tually have taken place. The photographer photo-grapher who turns on his mercury lamp has, though he know it not, been approaching very near to accomplishing accomplish-ing that feat which has corrugated the brows of the chemist through the ages. it would be weii for the readers of The Standard Examiner 10 keep in formed on the scientific study In thlH field of the electron as surprising dis OOvetdea are to be expected. |