Exercise 2. Translate into Russian. Make up your own sentences with these words.

Evolution, community, natural selection, evolutionary theory.

Exercise 3. Translate into English.

Клетка, свойства, область применения, принципы, выживание, развитие, животное.

Экология и эволюция тесно связаны с научной точки зрения.

Обе они изучают взаимодействие и отношения генов, клеток, видов и сообществ.

Их различие заключается в области применения.

4. Ген является основной единицей изучения обеих дисциплин.

Exercise 4. Answer the questions.

How are ecology and evolution connected?

What is evolution generally concerned with?

What aspects play conceptual roles in ecological and evolutionary theory?

How are genetics and ecology connected?

Exercise 5. Divide the text into several passages. Give a title to each passage.

Exercise 6. Give the rendering of the text.

Ecosystem

A central principle of ecology is that each living organism has an ongoing and continual relationship with every other element that makes up its environment. The sum of interacting living organisms (the biocoenosis) and their non-living environment (the biotope) in an area is termed an ecosystem. Almost all ecosystems run on energy got from the sun by primary producers via photosynthesis. This energy then flows through the food chains to primary consumers (herbivores who eat and digest the plants), and on to secondary and tertiary consumers (either carnivores or omnivores). Nutrients are usually returned to the ecosystem via decomposition. The entire movement of chemicals in an ecosystem is termed a biogeochemical cycle, and includes the carbon and nitrogen cycle. Ecosystems of any size can be studied; for example, a rock and the plant life growing on it might be considered an ecosystem. This rock might be within a plain, with many such rocks, small grass, and grazing animals -- also an ecosystem. This plain might be in the tundra, which is also an ecosystem (although once they are of this size, they are generally termed ecozones or biomes). In fact, the entire terrestrial surface of the earth, all the matter which composes it, the air that is directly above it, and all the living organisms living within it can be considered as one, large ecosystem. Ecosystems can be roughly divided into terrestrial ecosystems (including forest ecosystems, steppes, savannas, and so on), freshwater ecosystems (lakes, ponds and rivers), and marine ecosystems, depending on the dominant biotope.

Ecosystems are not isolated from each other, but are interrelated. For example, water may circulate between ecosystems by means of a river or ocean current. Some species, such as salmon or freshwater eels, move between marine systems and fresh-water systems. These relationships between the ecosystems lead to the concept of a biome (a homogeneous ecological formation that exists over a large region, such as tundra or steppes). The biosphere comprises all of the Earth's biomes -- the entirety of places where life is possible -- from the highest mountains to the depths of the oceans. Biomes correspond rather well to subdivisions distributed along the latitudes, from the equator towards the poles, with differences based on the physical environment (for example, oceans or mountain ranges) and the climate. Their variation is generally related to the distribution of species according to their ability to tolerate temperature, dryness, or both. Though this is a simplification of a more complicated scheme, latitude and altitude approximate a good representation of the distribution of biodiversity within the biosphere. The biosphere may also be divided into ecozones, which are very well defined today and primarily follow the continental borders. The ecozones are themselves divided into ecoregions, though there is not agreement on their limits.

Exercise 1. Pronounce the following words. Translate them into Russian.

Organism /`ɔ:gənızm /, environment /ın`vαıərənmənt/, biocoenosis /‚bαıɔusı`nɔusıs/, ecosystem, food chain, consumer /kən`sjuı:mə /, photosynthesis /‚fɔutə`sınɵəsıs /, herbivore /`hə:bıvɔ:/, carnivore /`kα:nıvɔ: /, digest, plant, nutrient, via /vαıə/, cycle /`sαıkl/, tundra, surface /`sə:fıs/, steppe /step/, savanna, salmon /`sæmən/, eel /ı:l/, subdivision, latitude /`lætıtu:d /, altitude /`æltıtu:d /, equator, dryness, biodiversity.  

Exercise 2. Translate from English into Russian.

1. Экосистема - совокупность взаимодействующих живых организмов с неживой окружающей средой.

2. Энергия, получаемая посредством фотосинтеза, проходит по всей пищевой цепи экосистемы.

3. Размер экосистемы может быть разным: и камень с растительностью на нем, и вся земная поверхность являются экосистемами.

4. Земные, пресноводные и морские - три основных типа экосистем.

5. Экосистемы не изолированы друг от друга, и этот факт привел к возникновению понятия «биом».

6. На сегодняшний день четко выделены экозоны, на которые делится биосфера.

 Exercise 3. Translate the following words. Write them down into your dictionaries. Make up your own sentences with them

пищевая цепь, питательные вещества, разложение, азот, травоядные, равнина, пастбищные животные, пресноводный, земной, морской, долгота, широта

Exercise 4. Agree or disagree.

1) Ecosystem is the sum of interacting living organisms with their living environment.

2) Carnivores are animals that eat and digest the plants.

3) Carnivores are primary consumers.

4) The entire movement of chemicals in an ecosystem includes the carbon and nitrogen cycle.

5) Ecosystems can be roughly divided into terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems.

6) Salmon is considered to be a biome.

7) The division of the biosphere into ecozones is defined nowadays.

Exercise 5. Divide the text into several passages. Give each passage a title. Give the main idea of each passage in one sentence.

Exercise 6. Ask 7 questions to the text. Let you group mates answer them.

Exercise 7. Give the summary of the text.

 

  

 

 

Unit 3 Ecological problems

Ecological crisis

The retreat of Aletsch Glacier in the Swiss Alps (situation in 1979, 1991 and 2002), due to global warming.

Generally, an ecological crisis occurs with the loss of adaptive capacity when the resilience of an environment or of a species or a population evolves in a way unfavourable to coping with perturbations that interfere with that ecosystem, landscape or species survival. It may be that the environment quality degrades compared to the species needs, after a change in an abiotic ecological factor (for example, an increase of temperature, less significant rainfalls). It may be that the environment becomes unfavourable for the survival of a species (or a population) due to an increased pressure of predation (for example overfishing). Lastly, it may be that the situation becomes unfavourable to the quality of life of the species (or the population) due to a rise in the number of individuals (overpopulation). Ecological crises vary in length and severity, occurring within a few months or taking as long as a few million years. They can also be of natural or anthropic origin. They may relate to one unique species or to many species, as in an Extinction event. Lastly, an ecological crisis may be local (as an oil spill) or global (a rise in the sea level due to global warming). According to its degree a local crisis will have more or less significant consequences, from the death of many individuals to the total extinction of a species. Whatever its origin, disappearance of one or several species often will involve a rupture in the food chain, further impacting the survival of other species. In the case of a global crisis, the consequences can be much more significant. However, it should be noted that the disappearance of certain species, such as the dinosaurs, by freeing an ecological niche, allowed the development and the diversification of the mammals. An ecological crisis thus paradoxically favoured biodiversity.

Exercise 1. Read the words and remember their pronunciation. Find the sentences with these words in the text and read and translate them.

glacier, crisis, perturbation, interfere, significant, increase, pressure, predation, occur, origin, consequences, anthropic, rupture, dinosaur, niche, diversification.

Exercise 2. Translate the following words from Russian into English. Write them down into your dictionaries. Make up your own sentences with them.

устойчивость к внешним воздействиям, осадки, хищничество, разлив нефти, уровень моря, глобальное потепление, значительные последствия, вымирание, воздействовать, млекопитающие.

Exercise 3. Make up your own sentences with several words from ex. 1, let other students translate them into English.

Exercise 4. Give the main idea of the text in short (5-7 sentences).

Exercise 5. Speak about any ecological crisis you’ve heard, about its causes and consequences.

Air pollution

Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or damages the natural environment, into the atmosphere.

An air pollutant is known as a substance in the air that can cause harm to humans and the environment. Pollutants can be in the form of solid particles, liquid droplets, or gases. In addition, they may be natural or man-made. Pollutants can be classified as either primary or secondary. Usually, primary pollutants are substances directly emitted from a process, such as ash from a volcanic eruption, the carbon monoxide gas from a motor vehicle exhaust or sulfur dioxide released from factories. Secondary pollutants are not emitted directly. Rather, they form in the air when primary pollutants react or interact. An important example of a secondary pollutant is ground level ozone — one of the many secondary pollutants that make up photochemical smog.

Major primary pollutants produced by human activity include:

• Sulfur oxides (SO_x) - especially sulfur dioxide, a chemical compound with the formula SO₂. Since coal and petroleum often contain sulfur compounds, their combustion generates sulfur dioxide. Further oxidation of SO₂, forms H₂SO₄, and thus acid rain.
• Nitrogen oxides (NO_x) - especially nitrogen dioxide are emitted from high temperature combustion.
• Carbon monoxide - is a colourless, odourless, non-irritating but very poisonous gas. It is a product by incomplete combustion of fuel such as natural gas, coal or wood. Vehicular exhaust is a major source of carbon monoxide.
• Carbon dioxide (CO₂) - a greenhouse gas emitted from combustion but is also a gas vital to living organisms. It is a natural gas in the atmosphere.
• Volatile organic compounds - VOCs are an important outdoor air pollutant.

• Particulate matter - are tiny particles of solid or liquid suspended in a gas. In contrast, aerosol refers to particles and the gas together. Sources of particulate matter can be man made or natural. Some particulates occur naturally, originating from volcanoes, dust storms, forest and grassland fires, living vegetation, and sea spray. Increased levels of fine particles in the air are linked to health hazards such as heart disease, altered lung function and lung cancer.

• Toxic metals, such as lead, cadmium and copper.
• Ammonia (NH₃) - emitted from agricultural processes.
• Odors — such as from garbage, sewage, and industrial processes
• Radioactive pollutants - produced by nuclear explosions, war explosives, and natural processes such as the radioactive decay of radon.

Exercise1. Learn the rules of reading chemical formulas and reactions (see the part “Chemistry”).

Exercise 2 Read and translate the following chemical formulas and equations.

a) CuO + H2SO4 = CuSO4 + H2O

b) BaO2 + H2SO4 = BaSO4

c) CO2 + Ca(OH)2 = CaCO3 + H2O

d) ZnO + 2HCl = ZnCl2 + H2O

Exercise 3. To make the rendering of the text divide it into several parts. Give each part a title.

Exercise 4. Give the main idea of each passage.

Exercise 5. Render the whole text

Global Warming

Exercise 1. Find the passage which contains the information about the conclusions of IPCC. Read and translate it. Render the whole text in writing.

       Global warming is the increase in the average temperature of the Earth's near-surface air and oceans since the mid-20th century and its projected continuation. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes that increasing greenhouse gas concentrations resulting from human activity such as fossil fuel burning and deforestation caused most of the observed temperature increase since the middle of the 20th century. The IPCC also concludes that variations in natural phenomena such as solar radiation and volcanoes produced most of the warming from pre-industrial times to 1950 and had a small cooling effect afterward.

       Climate model projections summarized in the latest IPCC report indicate that the global surface temperature will probably rise. Most studies focus on the period up to the year 2100. However, warming is expected to continue beyond 2100 even if emissions stop, because of the large heat capacity of the oceans and the long lifetime of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. An increase in global temperature will cause sea levels to rise and will change the amount and pattern of precipitation, probably including expansion of subtropical deserts. The continuing retreat of glaciers, permafrost and sea ice is expected, with warming being strongest in the Arctic. Other likely effects include increases in the intensity of extreme weather events, species extinctions, and changes in agricultural yields.

 

       Greenhouse gases

       Recent atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) increases. Each year's maximum occurs during the Northern Hemisphere's late spring, and declines during its growing season as plants remove some atmospheric CO₂. The greenhouse effect is the process by which absorption and emission of infrared radiation by gases in the atmosphere warm a planet's lower atmosphere and surface.

Naturally occurring greenhouse gases have a mean warming effect of about 33 °C (59 °F). The major greenhouse gases are water vapor, which causes about 36–70 percent of the greenhouse effect; carbon dioxide (CO₂), which causes 9–26 percent; methane (CH₄), which causes 4–9 percent; and ozone (O₃), which causes 3–7 percent. Clouds also affect the radiation balance, but they are composed of liquid water or ice and so are considered separately from water vapor and other gases. Human activity since the Industrial Revolution has increased the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. CO₂ concentrations are continuing to rise due to burning of fossil fuels and land-use change. The future rate of rise will depend on uncertain economic, sociological, technological, and natural developments.

Water pollution

Read the text about water pollution. Find the passage which contains the information about the reasons and consequences of water pollution. Read and translate the passage. Render the whole text.

       Water pollution means contamination of surface or ground water supplies by sewage industrial wastes or garbage and other refuse. Water pollution arises from the activities of man in his cities, industries and agricultural pursuits. Water pollution becomes not only an aesthetic problem for man, but an economic and medical one as well. Bacterial and viral contamination is a threat for spread of waterborne diseases such as typhoid, shigellosis or bacillary dysentery, amoebic dysentery, cholera and hepatitis.

     Water pollution is considered to be perhaps an ever greater hazard to health and economic growth menace to recreation than air pollution. Millions of fish are killed in coastal waters and rivers each year. Radioactive wastes detergents, pesticides and other chemicals, are found in numerous rivers and streams. In addition, demands upon available water have multiplied because of a larger population, concentrations of people in large urban areas, higher standards of living, growing industry, increased agriculture, and the production of new chemical substances requiring water in the manufacturing process.

       Pollution control. An over-all reduction of the quantities of contaminants to be discharged to watercourses is necessary. The users of public waters have a responsibility for returning the as pure as possible. Adoption of better industrial and agricultural practices will be necessary to prevent the more toxic wastes from being discharged into lake, stream, or ocean. For the majority of wastes from cities and industries the solution lies in treatment by physical, chemical, and biological processes which will remove suspended, colloidal and dissolved solids. Sedimentation, coagulation and filtration will remove up to 50% of the organic matter. For more thorough removals it is necessary to use biological processes in which large masses of bacteria and other microorganisms are brought into close contact with the soluble and colloidal organic matter in the waste waters. “Biological filters” are used in most of the biological processes.

       Prevention of pollution. Waters generally are classified as surface waters and ground waters. Surface waters are lakes, rivers, reservoirs, streams and coastal waters. Treating polluted surface waters is somewhat simpler than eliminating pollution from ground waters, where the pollution can travel rapidly or slowly depending on the nature of the ground strata through which the supply moves and on the nature of the pollution itself. Intensive research is needed to discover better and more efficient techniques for treating water. Scientists in universities and research laboratories are studying a very wide range of renovation techniques. Among them are absorption by carbon or other absorptive filters, distillation, freezing, ion exchange, electrodialysis and electrolysis.

 

Unit 4 Geographycal description

 

South America

Read the text. Find the passage which contains the information about the landforms of South America. Read and translate it. Render the whole text.

       Part I: Introduction. Landforms. Climate.

 

       South America, fourth largest of Earth’s seven continents (after Asia, Africa, and North America), occupying 17,820,900 sq km (6,880,700 sq mi), or 12 percent of Earth’s land surface. South America has a 2009 estimated population of 394 million, or 6 percent of the world’s people. The continent comprises 12 nations. Ten of the countries are Latin. Two of the nations are former dependencies. 

South America consists of four upland provinces, extending inland from the coasts, and, between them, three lowland provinces. The northern and western fringes are dominated by the Andes Mountains, the second highest mountain range in the world. Most of the eastern coast is fringed by the broader—and generally less elevated—highland areas of the Guiana and Brazilian massifs and the Patagonian Plateau. The main lowland is the vast Amazon Basin in the equatorial part of the continent; it is drained by the Amazon River, the world’s second longest river.

       The Orinoco River drains a lowland in the north; to the south lies the Paraguay-Paraná basin. South America has few large lakes. Many of the large permanent lakes are situated at relatively high elevations in the Andes.

       South America is dominated by relatively warm climatic regimes. Spanning nearly the entire continent along the equator is a belt of humid tropical climate that grades to the north and south into broad zones where the length of the rainy season and the amount of rainfall diminish. These zones have wet summers and dry winters and are subject to prolonged droughts. Droughts are a particularly serious problem in northeastern Brazil and along the northern coast of Venezuela and Colombia.

       The areas of rainy tropical and tropical wet-dry climate extend along the Pacific coast of Colombia and Ecuador. In the northern half of South America only the Andes region has a cool climate. Temperatures decrease with increasing elevation, so that the tropical climate of the lowlands and lower slopes changes to subtropical and temperate climates at intermediate elevations, and finally to cold alpine climate at the mountain crests. South of the tropic of Capricorn, South America has cool to cold winters and cool to warm summers.

       The storm frequency, greatest in winter, diminishes northward through Chile. This zone is bordered by desert, which extends along the coast as far north as Ecuador. Subhumid and arid conditions prevail to the east of the southern Andes. In the Pampas and southern Brazilian Highlands, however, summers tend to be humid, and in the winter cyclonic storms may penetrate, bringing rain and chilly weather. Snow occasionally falls over the highlands, and frosts may spread north toward the tropic of Capricorn, causing extensive damage to crops.

 

       Part II: Vegetation and Animals

 

       The vegetation zones of South America correspond closely with the climatic zones. The areas of wet tropical climate have a dense cover of rain forest, or selva. The largest forest area in the world, this rain forest covers much of equatorial South America, including the Brazilian coast and the lower slopes of the Andes, and contains tropical hardwoods, palms, tree ferns, bamboos, and lianas. Open forests and brushlands are found in the areas of winter drought chiefly on the Venezuelan coast, in northeastern Brazil, and on the Gran Chaco. Between these drier areas and the rain forest are zones of tall grass (savannas) and of scrub and grass. Mixed (containing both deciduous and evergreen trees) and deciduous forests occur in southern Brazil and along the slopes of the Andes. In Brazil the forest grades, to the south, into areas of rolling prairie interrupted by wooded hills. The Gran Chaco is characterized by grassy plains and open thorn scrub forest. The flat Pampas of east central Argentina is the largest midlatitude grassland of South America. To the south a zone of scrub steppe marks the transition to the low brush and bunch grass that cover the drier and cooler Patagonia region. Along the Pacific coast, the vegetation grades northward from forest to open woodland, to shrubs and grass in central Chile, and eventually to the scrub and desert vegetation that prevails into northern Peru and up to the mountain flanks.

       South America, Central America, the lowlands of Mexico, and the West Indies may be classified as a single zoogeographic region usually called the Neotropical Region. Fauna is characterized by variety and a singular lack of affinity with the fauna of other continents, including North America. Found throughout are families of mammals absolutely confined to the region, including two unique species of monkey, bloodsucking bats, and many unusual rodents. The region has only one kind of bear, the spectacled bear. Horses or other ungulates (hoofed mammals) were never native to the region, aside from one species of tapir. South America also was never native to ruminants, except lamoids (members of the camel family). Also characteristic of the continent are jaguar, peccary, giant anteater, and coati. Birds display still greater isolation and singularity. About 23 families and about 600 genera of exclusively Neotropical birds occur, as well as the greater part of other important families, together with a great variety of sea fowl. Reptiles include boas and anacondas; iguanas, caimans, and crocodiles are found in many areas. Freshwater fish are varied and abundant. Regional exclusiveness also characterizes insects and other invertebrates. On the whole, South American fauna is more local and distinct than that of any continent other than Australia; probably more than four-fifths of its species are restricted to its zoogeographic boundaries.

Getting a credit test.

For getting a credit test the students are proposed to choose any country and describe its geographical features: landforms, waterbasins, climate, fauna and flora and so on. They should have a skeleton map done in English with all necessary signs written in English. Then they make a presentation of there country. 

Here are the examples prepared by some students:

1) by Elena Nikanorova              2) by Viktoria Svatukha

3) by Chanvin Grechikhina

 

Literature for the students

  This list of literature can be used by students foe finding articles on different topics of their speciality and for rendering them or for finding some additional information.

Chemistry:

1. М.М. Кутепова. The world of chemistry: Английский язык для химиков. (2006)

2. А.Е. Чернухин. Technical English textbook. (1968)

3. Серебренникова

Biology

1. П.Г. Криндач, Г.А. Редькина. Agronomy. Учебное пособие для сельскохозяйственных вузов. (1958)

2. И.Ю. Марковина, З.К. Максимова, М.Б. Вайнштейн. Английский язык: Учебник для медицинских вузов и медицинских специалистов. (2003)

3. Ж.Д. Кулагина. Introduction to Biology. Учебное пособие. (2005)

4. Allan B. Cobb. Animal Sciences. (2002)

5. Brenda Walpole, Ashby Merson-Davies, Leighton Dann. Biology for the IB Diploma. (2011)

Geography and Ecology.

1. Н.А. Долгина. Экология и человек: Учебное пособие по английскому языку. (1995)

2. Е.П. Козлова. Geology: методические указания по английскому языку. (2003)

3. Susan Holden. Macmillan Topics: Environment. (2010)

4. Bill McGuire. Global catastrophes. (2005)

5. Thomson Gale. UXL Encyclopedia of weather and natural disasters. (2008)

Словари и энциклопедии

1. В.М. Котляков, А.И. Комарова. Elsevier’s Dictionary of Geography in English, Russian, Spanish, French and German. (2007)

2. Ж.-К. Корбей. Русско-английский визуальный словарь. (2007)

 

3. Karen Scott. Dictionary of Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Mathematics. (2007)

4. McGraw-Hill. Dictionary of bioscience. (2002)

5. Michael Allaby. A dictionary of Zoology. (1999)

6. A Dorling Kindersley Book: Science Encyclopedia, 2009.

Периодика:

1. Nature. (Nature Publishing Group, www.nature.com/nature)

2. Science. (AAAS, www.sciencemag.org)

3. New Scientist. (www.NewScientist.com)

APPENDIX

CHEMISTRY

Periodic table

Chemical Elements List: Symbols and Names . Atomic Number Chemical Symbol

Name of Chemical

 Atomic Weight (Mass Number) Short Description   1

H

Hydrogen 1 Hydrogen is a colourless gas at room temperature. It is highly flammable.   2

He

Helium 4 Helium is a colourless odourless tasteless gas at room temperature.   3

Li

Lithium 7 Lithium is a soft silver-white metal classified as an "alkali metal" element.   4

Be

Beryllium 9 Beryllium is found naturally only combined with other elements e.g. in aquamarine, emerald and chrysoberyl. The free element beryllium is a steel-gray, strong, lightweight brittle "alkaline earth metal".   5

B

Boron 11 Boron exists as amorphous boron (a brown powder) and crystalline boron (black, very hard and a poor conductor at room temperature).   6

C

Carbon 12 Carbon exists as graphite, diamond, and amorphous carbon.   7

N

Nitrogen 14 Nitrogen is a colourless odorless tasteless and mostly inert gas at room temperature.   8

O

Oxygen 16 Oxygen occurs as a highly reactive colourless odourless tasteless gas.   9

F

Fluorine 19 Fluorine is a very reactive poisonous pale-yellowish brown gas.   10

Ne

Neon 20 Neon is a colourless inert noble gas that glows reddish-orange in discharge tubes and neon lamps.   11

Na

Sodium 23 Sodium is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive "alkali metal" element.   12

Mg

Magnesium 24 Magnesium is found naturally only combined with other elements as it is highly reactive. The free metal burns with a distinctive brilliant white light.   13

Al

Aluminium 27 Aluminium is found naturally only combined with other elements as it is highly reactive. It is a soft, durable, lightweight, ductile and malleable metal whose appearance ranges from silvery to dull gray. It is non-magnetic, non-sparking and insoluble in alcohol. The free metal burns with a distinctive brilliant white light.   14

Si

Silicon 28 Silicon rarely occurs in free element form in nature. It is found in dusts, sands, and forms of silicon dioxide (silica) or silicates.   15

P

Phosphorus 31 Phosphorus occurs in phosphate rocks. Elemental phosphorus exists in two forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus but - due to its high reactivity, phosphorus is never found as a free element in nature.   16

S

Sulphur 32 Sulphur is a bright yellow crystalline solid. In nature, it can be found as the pure element and as sulfide and sulfate minerals.   17

Cl

Chlorine 35.5 Chlorine is a pale yellow-green, highly reactive, gas with a strong smell (of bleach) at room temperature.   18

Ar

Argon 40 Argon is a colourless odourless and non-toxic gas at room temp and pressure. It is inert under most conditions so forms no confirmed stable compounds.   19

K

Potassium 39 Potassium is a soft silvery-white alkali metal that oxidizes rapidly in air and is very reactive with water. It occurs in nature only as ionic salts, e.g. dissolved in seawater, and as part of minerals.   20

Ca

Calcium 40 Calcium is a soft grey alkaline earth metal.   21

Sc

Scandium 45 Scandium is a silvery-white metallic transition metal.   22

Ti

Titanium 48 Titanium is a light (low-density) metal that is strong, lustrous, corrosion-resistant and silver in colour.   23

V

Vanadium 51 Vanadium is a soft, silvery gray, ductile transition metal.   24

Cr

Chromium 52 Chromium is a steely-grey, lustrous, hard metal with a high melting point. It is odourless, tasteless, and malleable.   25

Mn

Manganese 55 Manganese is a silvery-grey hard metal, very brittle and difficult to fuse but easy to oxidize. Manganese metal and its common ions are paramagnetic.   26

Fe

Iron 56 Iron and iron alloys (steels) are the most common metals and ferromagnetic materials in everyday use.   27

Co

Cobalt 59 Cobalt is a hard, lustrous, grey metal that occurs in metallic-lustered ores, e.g. cobaltite (CoAsS). Cobalt-based colours and pigments have been used for jewellry and paints for 1000s years.   28

Ni

Nickel 59 Nickel is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge.   29

Cu

Copper 64 Copper is a ductile metal with high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable. Freshly exposed copper surfaces are pinkish / peachy in colour.   30

Zn

Zinc 65 Zinc is a bluish-white, lustrous, diamagnetic, hard, brittle, transition metal.   31

Ga

Gallium 70 Gallium is a soft silvery-coloured brittle solid at low temperatures. It is a poor metal and does not occur in elemental form in nature, but as the gallium(III) salt in very small amounts in bauxite and zinc ores.   32

Ge

Germanium 73 Germanium is a lustrous, hard, greyish-white metalloid that has five naturally occurring isotopes ranging in atomic mass number from 70 to 76. It is an important semiconductor material used in transistors, electronics,fiber-optic systems, infrared optics and solar cells.   33

As

Arsenic 75 Arsenic is a poisonous metalloid that has many forms incl. a yellow (molecular non-metallic) and several black and grey forms.   34

Se

Selenium 79 Selenium occurs in various forms, the most stable of which is a dense purplish-grey semiconductor. Non-conductive forms of selenium include a black glass-like allotrope and several red crystalline forms.   35

Br

Bromine 80 Bromine is a halogen that is a brown liquid at room temperature. It's vapour is toxic and corrosive.   36

Kr

Krypton 84 Krypton is a colourless, odourless, tasteless, noble gas that occurs in trace amounts in the atmosphere.   37

Rb

Rubidium 85.5 Rubidium is a soft, silvery-white "alkali metal" element.    

38

Sr

Strontium 88

Strontium is a grey, silvery metal that is softer than calcium and highly reactive with water. It occurs naturally only in compounds with other elements, such as in the minerals strontianite and celestite.

39

Y

Yttrium 89

Yttrium is a silvery-metallic transition metal that is nearly always found combined with the lanthanoids in rare earth minerals - as a free element.

40

Zr

Zirconium 91

Zirconium is a lustrous, grey-white, strong transition metal. It is not found in nature as a free element but may be obtained from the mineral zircon.

41

Nb

Niobium 93

Niobium is a soft, grey, ductile transition metal found in the minerals pyrochlore and columbite..

42

Mo

Molybdenum 96

Molybdenum is a silvery metal that does not occur as the free metal in nature but may be extracted from certain minerals.

43

Tc

Technetium 98

Technetium is a silvery grey, crystalline transition. It is the lowest atomic number element without any stable isotopes. Most of technetium is produced synthetically but minute amounts have been found in nature. Naturally occurring technetium occurs as a spontaneous fission product in uranium ore or by neutron capture in molybdenum ores.

44

Ru

Ruthenium 101

Ruthenium is a rare transition metal that is inert to most other chemicals.

45

Rh

Rhodium 103

Rhodium is a rare, silvery-white, hard, inert transition metal.

46

Pd

Palladium 106

Palladium is a rare lustrous silvery-white transition metal. (It is relatively valuable due to its many industrial applications yet limited supply.)

47

Ag

Silver 108

Silver is a soft, white, lustrous transition metal. It is the element with the highest electrical conductivity and the metal of highest thermal conductivity.

48

Cd

Cadmium 112

Cadmium is a soft bluish-white toxic metal.

49

In

Indium 115

Indium is a rare and very soft, malleable post-transition metal. It is named for the indigo blue line in its spectrum that was the first indication of its existence as a new and unknown element (in metal ores).

50

Sn

Tin 119

Tin is a malleable, ductile, and highly crystalline silvery-white metal of low-toxicity. It was used widely during the "Bronze Age" to form bronze, an alloy of tin and copper.

51

Sb

Antimony 122

Antimony is a silvery lustrous grey metalloid that has two stable isotopes, one with 70 neutrons, the other with 72. It is found mainly as antimony sulfide, commonly known as stibnite.

52

Te

Tellurium 128

Tellurium is a brittle, mildly toxic, silver-white metalloid.

53

I

Iodine 127

Iodine is a halogen that is a bluish-black solid at room temperature and pressure. It may be seen apparently sublimating at standard temperatures into a violet-pink gas with an irritating smell.

54

Xe

Xenon 131

Xenon is a colourless, odourless, heavy, noble gas that occurs in trace amounts in the Earth's atmosphere.

55

Cs

Caesium 133

Caesium is a soft, silvery-gold alkali metal with a melting point of 28 °C. Although it has only mild chemical toxicity, the radioisotopes present are a risk in case of radiation leaks, hence caesium is considered hazardous.

56

Ba

Barium 137

Barium is a soft silvery metallic alkaline earth metal. The free element is not found in nature but in various minerals.

57

La

Lanthanum 139

Lanthanum is a silver- white, malleable, ductile, soft metal found in some rare-earth minerals, usually in combination with cerium and other rare earth elements. It may be extracted from the minerals monazite and bastnäsite.

58

Ce

Cerium 140

Cerium is a soft, silvery, ductile metal that is found in certain minerals, incl. monazite and bastnasite.

59

Pr

Praseodymium 141

Praseodymium is a soft, silvery, malleable and ductile metal. At low temperatures itis paramagnetic at any temperature above 1 Kelvin.

60

Nd

Neodymium 144

Neodymium is a rare earth metal that has a bright, silvery metallic luster - but oxidizes quickly in air.

61

Pm

Promethium 147

Promethium is a radioactive element, only trace amounts of which can be found in naturally occurring ores. Its longest lived isotope 145Pm is a soft beta emitter with a half-life of 17.7 years. Pure promethium can exist in two allotropic forms. Promethium salts luminesce in the dark with a pale blue or greenish glow, due to high radioactivity.

62

Sm

Samarium 150

Samarium is a rare earth metal with a bright silver luster..

63

Eu

Europium 152

Europium is a ductile metal that becomes a superconductor when simultaneously at both high pressure (80 GPa) and at low temperature (1.8 Kelvin). It is the most reactive rare earth elements.

64

Gd

Gadolinium 157

Gadolinium is a silvery-white malleable and ductile rare-earth metal. It is strongly paramagnetic at room temperature, and has ferromagnetic properties below room temperature. It also has a magnetocaloric effect, i.e. its temperature increases when it enters a magnetic field and decreases when it leaves the magnetic field.

65

Tb

Terbium 159

Terbium is a silvery-white rare earth metal that is malleable, ductile and soft enough to be cut with a knife. It is not found as a free element in nature but is contained in many minerals.

66

Dy

Dysprosium 162.5

Dysprosium is a rare earth metal with a bright silver luster. It is soft enough to be cut with a knife, and can be machined without sparking (when overheating is avoided). It has unusual yet important magnetic properties.

67

Ho

Holmium 165

Holmium is a relatively soft and malleable silvery-white metal that is stable in dry air at room temperature. It occurs in the minerals monazite and gadolinite. Holmium has the highest magnetic strength of any element and therefore is used for the polepieces of the strongest static magnets. It is also used in nuclear control rods.

68

Er

Erbium 167

Erbium is a silvery-white solid rare earth metal. It does not occur as the free metal in nature but may be extracted from certain minerals e.g. gadolinite.

69

Tm

Thulium 169

Thulium is a soft, malleable, ductile metal with silvery luster (when pure). It is ferromagnetic below 32 K, antiferromagnetic between 32 and 56 K and paramagnetic above 56 K.

70

Yb

Ytterbium 173

Ytterbium is a soft, malleable, ductile rare earth metal with a bright silvery luster. It has 3 allotropes (called alpha, beta and gamma) and is paramagnetic at temperatures above 1 K.

71

Lu

Lutetium 175

Lutetium is a silvery white corrosion-resistant rare earths metal that has several radioactive isotopes e.g. 176Lu.

72

Hf

Hafnium 178.5

Hafnium is a lustrous silvery-grey transition metal found in zirconium minerals.

73

Ta

Tantalum 181

Tantalum is a rare, hard, blue-gray, lustrous transition metal that occurs naturally in the mineral tantalite.

74

W

Tungsten 184

Tungsten is a steel-grey metal that may seem brittle and difficult to work, but can be worked easily when pure. It has the lowest coefficient of thermal expansion of any pure metal.

 

75

Re

Rhenium 186

Rhenium is a silvery-white metal that has one of the highest melting points of all elements (exceeded by W and C). It is one of the densest elements (exceeded by Pt, Ir and Os).

76

Os

Osmium 190

Osmium is an extremely dense, blue-grey, hard, brittle, metal that remains lustrous even at high temperatures. It has 4th highest melting point of all elements and is considered to be the densest known element.

77

Ir

Iridium 192

Iridium is a very hard, brittle, silvery-white transition metal, the second densest element and the most corrosion-resistant metal, even at high temperatures.

78

Pt

Platinum 195

Platinum is a silvery-white, lustrous, ductile, and malleable metal. Its resistance to wear and tarnish results in its popularity for making fine jewelry.

79

Au

Gold 197

Gold is the most malleable and ductile metal. It is unaffected by air, moisture and most corrosive reagents, hence its popularity for use in coins and jewelry and as a protective coating on other, more reactive, metals - though it is not chemically inert. Pure gold is odourless, tasteless very dense.

80

Hg

Mercury 201

Mercury is a heavy silvery-white metal - the only metal that is liquid at room temperature and pressure. Compared to other metals, it is a poor conductor of heat, but a fair conductor of electricity.

81

Tl

Thallium 204

Thallium is soft, malleable, grey poor metal. It may be perserved by storage under oil. Thallium is known for its high and nonselective toxicity.

82

Pb

Lead 207

Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal that has a bluish-white colour after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull greyish color when exposed to air.

83

Bi

Bismuth 209

Bismuth is a heavy and brittle poor metal that has a silvery white colour with a pink tinge (due to surface oxide). It is the most naturally diamagnetic of all metals, and only mercury has a lower thermal conductivity. It is generally considered to be the last naturally occurring stable, non-radioactive element on the periodic table, though it is slightly radioactive

84

Po

Polonium 210

Polonium is a rare and highly radioactive metalloid that occurs in uranium ores. It has 33 known isotopes (all radioactive) that have atomic masses ranging from 188 to 220.

85

At

Astatine 210

Astatine is a highly radioactive halogen thought to be more metallic than iodine. Its most stable isotope has a half-life of around 8.3 hours. Astatine is the least reactive of the halogens (less reactive than iodine) and occurs naturally in three natural radioactive decay series but, due to its short half-life, is found only in tiny amounts.

86

Rn

Radon 222

Radon is a radioactive, colourless, odourless, tasteless noble gas, occurring naturally as the decay product of radium. It is one of the densest substances that remains a gas under normal conditions and is considered to be a health hazard due to its radioactivity.

87

Fr

Francium 223

Francium is an alkali metal and the most unstable of the naturally occurring elements. Its most stable isotope has a maximum half-life of only 22 minutes.

88

Ra

Radium 226

Radium is pure white radioactive alkaline earth metal that occurs in trace amounts in uranium ores. On exposure to air it forms a black oxide.

89

Ac

Actinium 227

Actinium is a silvery radioactive metal that glows (pale blue) in the dark due to radioactivity.

90

Th

Thorium 232

Thorium is a naturally occurring, slightly radioactive metal.

91

Pa

Protactinium 231

Protactinium is a radioactive metal that has a bright metallic luster that it retains for some time in contact with air. It is superconductive at temperatures below 1.4 Kelvin.

92

U

Uranium 238

Uranium is a silvery-white radioactive metal that has 6 known isotopes It occurs naturally in low concentrations (a few parts per million) in soil, rock and water, and is commercially extracted from uranium-bearing minerals such as uraninite.Uranium decays slowly by emitting an alpha particle.

93

Np

Neptunium 237

Neptunium is a metal with a silvery appearance, that is chemically reactive and occurs in at least 3 allotropic forms: α-neptunium (orthorhombic), β-neptunium (above 280 °C, tetragonal), γ-neptunium (above 577 °C, cubic). Trace amounts of neptunium are found naturally as decay products from transmutation reactions in uranium ores.

94

Pu

Plutonium 242

Plutonium is a silvery-white actinide metal that tarnishes when exposed to air, forming a dull coating of oxide. It occurs in at least 6 allotropes. It is also a radioactive poison that accumulates in bone marrow, hence handling plutonium is highly dangerous.

95

Am

Americium 243

Americium is a radioactive metal with a silvery and white luster. At room temperature it slowly tarnishes in dry air.

96

Cm

Curium 247

Curium is a radioactive metal produced by bombarding plutonium with alpha particles (it does not occur naturally).

97

Bk

Berkelium 247

Berkelium is a radioactive metal produced by bombarding americum with alpha particles.

98

Cf

Californium 251

Californium is a radioactive metal produced by bombarding curium with alpha particles.

99

Es

Einsteinium 254

Einsteinium is a highly radioactive element considered to be a metal but without any practical uses. It does not occur naturally in measureable quantities and is considered highly toxic.

100

Fm

Fermium 253

Fermium is a highly radioactive element considered to be a metal and produced by bombarding plutonium with neutrons. It is extremely rare and highly toxic.

101

Md

Mendelevium 256

Mendelevium is a highly radioactive element usually synthesized by bombarding einsteinium with alpha particles. It has no known uses as only trace amounts have ever been produced.

102

No

Nobelium 254

Nobelium was first announced in the late 1950s. Its physical appearance is unknown but it is thought likely to be silvery-white or grey and metallic. If sufficient amounts of nobelium were ever produced, it would pose a radiation hazard.

103

Lw

Lawrencium 257

Lawrencium is so rare that its gross appearance (e.g. colour, form etc.) is unknown. It is thought likely to be a silvery-white or grey metal but if sufficient amounts of lawrencium were ever produced, it would pose a serious radiation hazard.

104

Rf

Rutherfordium 261

Rutherfordium is a rare, synthetic, highly radioactive element.

105

Db

Dubnium 262

Dubnium is a rare, synthetic, highly radioactive element.

106

Sg

Seaborgium 266

Seaborgium is a rare, synthetic, highly radioactive element.

107

Bh

Bohrium 264

Bohrium is a rare, synthetic, highly radioactive element.

108

Hs

Hassium 277

Hassium is a rare, synthetic, highly radioactive element.

109

Mt

Meitnerium 268

Meitnerium is a rare, synthetic, highly radioactive element.

110

Ds

Darmstadtium 271

Darmstadtium is a rare, synthetic, highl