Class #2 (Jan. 10) Reading Questions - The Particle Odyssey

Chapter 2

1. What are the three types of radiation produced by radioactive materials and first named by Rutherford. Give both the names and explain what each form of "radiation" actually is.

2. Describe the Rutherford-Geiger-Marsden experiment, which provided the first evidence for the existence of an atomic nucleus.

3. Explain what is actually visualized in a cloud chamber.

Chapter 3

4. What keeps an atomic nucleus, which consists of positive protons and uncharged neutrons, from breaking up due to proton-proton repulsion (recalling that "like charges repel").

5. Explain how the neutron (a neutral particle) can be detected with a cloud chamber when these devices only show visible tracks for charged particles.

6. What are the "lifetimes" of an isolated electron, proton, and neutron?

Chapter 4

7. What was Yukawa's predicted particle and how was it first found?

8. What was Anderson's evidence for the discovery of the positron (i.e., the anti-electron).

9. Fig. 4.18 displays evidence for the existence of a "V"-particle. Where exactly is the "V"-particle in this photo and what is the modern name for this particular particle?