TIMELINE

OF ATOM
John Dalton formulates the
modern atomic theory,

1803
proposing that elements are
made up of atoms and that
atoms of different elements
have different properties.

J.J. Thomson discovers

the electron,
1897 suggesting that atoms
are not indivisible.

Ernest Rutherford proposes

the nuclear model of the

1911
atom, with a small, dense
nucleus surrounded by
orbiting electrons.

Niels Bohr introduces the

Bohr model of the atom,

1913
which suggests that
electrons orbit the nucleus
in specific energy levels.

James Chadwick discovers

the neutron, completing the

1932
picture of the modern atom
with a nucleus composed of
protons and neutrons
surrounded by electrons.

Gell-Mann proposed that

protons, neutrons, and other
hadrons are composed of

1964 smaller particles called

"quarks," which come in
different flavors (such as up,
down, strange, charm, top,
and bottom).

George Zweig, an American

physicist, independently
proposed a similar idea to
Murray Gell-Mann's quark
model. In 1964, Zweig
introduced the concept of
1964
"aces," which are essentially
the same as quarks.