ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the standard model of the atom and its constituent particles and discusses the proton, neutron, and electron. It presents atomic number and atomic mass number and how they relate to the physical, chemical, and radioactive properties of atoms and provides the terms isotope and nuclide. The chapter explains what the nuclear and coulomb forces are and the role their interaction plays in radioactive decay. The explanation of exactly how the nuclear force leads to the phenomenon of radioactivity is very complicated and involves fiendish mathematics and advanced concepts in physics. Atoms of different elements characterized by their atomic number, atomic mass number, and nuclear energy state are referred to as nuclides. Radioactive nuclides are frequently referred to as radionuclides. The nuclear force has quite different properties than the coulomb force, much in the same way as the familiar forces of gravity and electromagnetism are different.
