How do you find the number of neutrons?
Atoms are the building blocks of all matter. Most of the mass of each atom is contained within its central portion, the nucleus. This mass is made up of positively-charged particles (protons) and neutral particles (neutrons). Rotating very rapidly around the nucleus are the extremely lightweight, negatively-charged electrons. The number of neutrons in an atom can be determined using its atomic number and total mass. Focus on the electron. In a neutral atom, the number of electrons equals the number of protons; however, the electron weighs only 1/1836th as much as a proton. (A neutron weighs about the same amount as a proton does.) It is not necessary to take the weight of the electron into consideration here because its weight is negligible. Consider the proton. The specific variety of an atom or element is determined by its atomic number, which equals the number of its protons. For uranium, the number of protons is 92. This is written in shorthand notation by scientists: ₉₂U²³⁸ Here w
