Welcome to the Time Line Project! This project is due ___________________________.
To help you piece together the story of what we know about the atom, you will be creating a timeline
depicting the development of the scientific model of the atom. It has been through debates by ancient
philosophers, new discoveries by physicists and chemists, it has created legendary scientists, and the
power of the atom has unleashed has saved and killed millions of people. Your journey begins 2500
hundred years ago with the ancient Greeks and will enter into the 1950s where many of the commonly
accepted and understood parts of the atom were finally illuminated. Your assignment is to research the
major contributors and significant discoveries that have affected the atomic model and develop a
timeline.
YOUR TIMELINE MUST INCLUDE:
 At least 3 scientists, that had an influence on the discovery of the atom, from each of the
following time periods (there are definitely more than 3 in each time period). For each scientist
you must include their name, date of birth and death, country of origin, year of their discovery, a
1 paragraph bio (try to include some of the conditions of the time they were working. For
example, Albert Einstein was a Jew working in science around the time of the Holocaust. How
would that have affected him?), a 1 paragraph description of their discovery (be sure to include
how their discovery impacted the development of what an atom looked like). A picture or sketch
of their discovery or of them with their discovery/equipment, or just them.
o
Ancient Times (450 AD and years prior)
o
450 -1700 (this time period is for extra credit only)
o
1700 -1800
These years are
o
1800 -1875
for the time of
o
1875 -1900
their discovery
o
1900 -1915
NOT their birth
o
1915 -1950
or death!
o
1950 – present (this time period is for extra credit only)
-
You MUST INLCUDE the following scientists (when deciding what era to put them in it
depends on when their work was published
Neils Bohr
James Chadwick
Marie Curie
John Dalton
Democritus
Werner Heisenberg
not by their life span).
Wilhelm C. Roentgen
Robert Millikan
Henri Becquerel
Ernest Rutherford
Erwin Schrodinger
J.J. Thomson
 You MUST INCLUDE the following pictorial models of the atom along with a 1-2 paragraph
explanation of the model and the date it was discovered
o
Small, spherical, solid, indivisible model
o
Electron Cloud Model
o
Plum Pudding Model
o
Rutherford Model
o
Planetary/Bohr Model
 Contains 3 major world events in each time period with a brief description of the event:
o
Ancient
o
500-1800
o
1800-1875
o
1875-1900
o
1900-1915
o
1915-1950
o
1950-current
 Be chronological in its sequence, with the dates clearly shown although it need not be to scale.
Place the world events on the top of the timeline, and the scientists and models on the bottom of
the timeline. Make sure that the data you select is appropriate and significant for each time
period.
 Be neat and typed.
 Include a bibliography or citations page showing the use of at least three sources (YOU MAY
NOT USE WIKIPEDIA) with correct format. You must also site your pictures using the number
format, which I will show you in class.
 Do not plagiarize! I can check to see if you did very easily. If you are caught doing this, you will
receive a zero, this means your partner will also.
 Use technology to create your timeline.
 Be larger than 8.5 x 11 in size.
Students may work alone or in a pair, there will be absolutely no groups of three. Each student is
responsible for knowing and understanding the contributions made by each scientist.
F.A.Q.
1. When we are trying to put scientists into different time categories it has been tricky to know where
to put some of them because of how long they lived. I am not sure if I should base it on when they were
born or when they died. What should I do?
Great question! You should do neither of those. The most important piece for the time line is the years
that they contributed their theories to chemistry. So, find the major dates of their discoveries and
then group them according to that.