Week Three Assignments - Molecular Structure and Bonding

Transition Metal: Silver
Silver has the chemical symbol Ag, and its atomic number is 47; it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element, and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal.
This is hands down my favorite metal, and I have more sterling silver (an alloy of silver consisting here in the US as 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper) jewelry than anyone should possess.

Silver occurs naturally as native silver, and also as an alloy, commonly combined with gold. It is produced as a byproduct of copper, gold, lead, and zinc refining – found commonly in Peru, Mexico (which has been mining silver since 1546 and which is still a major world producer), China, Australia, Chile, and Poland. Silver is used as jewelry, tableware and utensils and coins – it is a symbol of affluence and has been used as currency in all its forms.

Other uses of silver:
Electrical contacts and conductors; soldering compound
In mirrors
In catalysis of chemical reactions
As compound, in photographic film
Was used extensively as a dental amalgam material (for fillings); but this usage has been widely discontinued due to the high mercury content in this process
It has an antimicrobial property and is currently being researched in holistic medicine in the form of silver colloids as an alternative to antibiotics; in WWI it was in fact used as such before the invention of antibiotics.
Silver is highly malleable and is only slightly harder than gold.
There are many other uses for this element, but I will stop here before I end up writing a novel on the subject. I really love silver!

Link Review:
I prefer the link to the Visionlearning website, which has less graphics and more written explanation. I found the explanations to be easier to read and comprehend, and the pictures and graphics were again more helpful to me in understanding the material; the other sites that I was able to access (several of the links didn’t work) had moving graphics that were pretty high tech, but one of them moved too fast to be able to really follow what was happening, and the other one failed to explain what was going on at all.