Unlocking the Secrets of the Atom

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Unlocking the Secrets of the Atom

People have always been curious about the nature of things. For thousand of years, people have wondered whether everything of Earth have similar structure that was invisible to the naked eye. Early Greeks believed that matter could be broken into small pieces atoms, which means something that " cannot be divided".

Eventually, scientists discovered than an atom has three particles. Research done in the early 1900s gave scientist new information about these particles. The researchers found that every atom has a central core, or nucleus. They learned that most of mass of an atom is in its central core. They also discovered that an extremel powerful force holds the nucleus together.

The discovery led to new questions. Could an atom be split? Would splitting an atom release a force? Could they force be controlled?

Enrico Fermi Splits the Atom

Scientist investigated these possibilities. An Italian physicist named Enrico Fermi explored ways to split a single atom. In 1938, Fermi successfully split an uranium atom. He received a Nobel Prize for his work. The process came to be called nuclear fission.

In the same year, Fermi moved to the United States to escape political unrest in Italy. He found work as a college professor and continued to conduct research on the structure of atoms. Fermi was looking for away to split a chain of atoms. He thought that this process would release a huge amount of energy.

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Reference:
Buku Kuliah Bahasa Inggris Profesi (Pend.Fisika FKIP Untad)