The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copyrighted by BookRags, Inc.
Fermium is a transuranium element with atomic number 100. Its atomic mass is 257.0951 and its chemical symbol is Fm.
All isotopes of fermium are radioactive, with fermium-257 having the longest half life, 20.1 hours. Thus far, too little fermium has been prepared for scientists to determine its physical properties. Research suggests that its chemical properties are similar to those of erbium, above it in the periodic table.
Fermium has never been discovered in the Earth's crust and is not thought to be present there. It is prepared artificially in particle accelerators by bombarding heavy transuranium elements, such as californium, with alpha particles.
Fermium was discovered in 1952 as one of the byproducts of the first hydrogen bomb test at Eniwetok Atoll, Marshall Islands, in the Pacific Ocean.Albert Ghiorso led the team of researchers from the University of California that made the discovery. The team decided to name the element in honor of the Italian physicist Enrico Fermi (1901-54) who made many important scientific discoveries and was a leader of the U.S. effort to build the world's first atomic bomb during World War II.
Fermium exists in such small amounts that it has no practical uses.