Nitrogen is a chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. It's an odorless, tasteless, colorless, and mostly inert diatomic gas at standard conditions. Here are some key points about nitrogen:
1. **Origin of the Name**: The name "nitrogen" comes from French words "azote," meaning "silly air," and "gaze," meaning "gas." It was coined by French chemist Antoine Lavoisier in 1790.
2. **Discovery**: Nitrogen was discovered by English chemist Daniel Rutherford in 1772, although he referred to it as "phlogisticated air." However, it was Lavoisier who recognized nitrogen's unique properties and gave it its current name.
3. **History of Use**: Nitrogen has many uses due to its inertness. It's used in the production of ammonia (NH₃) through the Haber-Bosch process, which is crucial for fertilizers. Liquid nitrogen is also used as a coolant in cryogenic applications and as a propellant in rocket engines.
4. **Composition**: In Earth's atmosphere, nitrogen makes up about 78% by volume but only a tiny fraction of that amount (around 0.03%) is available to react with other substances because it's usually combined with oxygen or hydrogen.
5. **Isotopes**: Nitrogen has two stable isotopes: N-14 and N-15, with N-14 being more abundant. It also has several radioactive isotopes, but none of them are commonly found in nature.
Here are some interesting statistics about the name Natron in the United States over a span of several years:
* In 1995, there were 15 babies named Natron.
* The following year, in 1996, the number of newborns given this name decreased to 9.
* However, it bounced back up slightly in 1997 with 11 births.
* Unfortunately, the numbers dropped again in 1998 and 2002, both years seeing only 6 babies named Natron.
Altogether, over these five years, there were a total of 47 children born in the United States who were named Natron.