Thallium

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/thallium

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. How heavy is Thallium?Approximately 204.38 atomic mass units
2. What is the element symbol?Tl
3. What is the oxidation states?+1 (more stable) and +3
4. How was thallium discovered?Scientists Sir William Crookes and Claude-Auguste Lamy found thallium in 1861 by spotting a bright green line in a spectroscope when they looked at mineral samples.
5. Why is thallium dangerous?Thallium can be very toxic because it behaves like potassium in the body, which can harm people and animals if it gets into the bloodstream.

Post-transition Metal: A metal that is chemically similar to transition metals but lacks partially filled d or f electron shells.
Spectroscopy: The study of the interaction between matter and electromagnetic radiation, used for elemental identification.
Inert Pair Effect: The tendency of heavier p-block elements to exhibit a +1 oxidation state instead of the expected +3 due to the reluctance of the valence s-electrons to participate in bonding.