For some of the atoms, this is an oversimplifi cation because an electron confi guration like
1 s
2 2 s
2 2 p
2
does not give the complete picture. Each m value denotes an orbital in which two electrons can reside
with opposite spins. When l 1, m can have the values of 1, 0, and 1, which denote three orbitals.
Therefore, the two electrons could be paired in one of the three orbitals or they could be unpaired and