We know from the study of chemistry that all elements have fixed mass values: one mole58 of
any element in monatomic form (single, unbound atoms) will have a mass equal to the atomic mass
of that element. For example, one mole of carbon (C) atoms has a mass of 12 grams because the
element carbon has an atomic mass of 12. Similarly, one mole of oxygen (O) atoms is guaranteed to
have a mass of 16 grams59 because 16 is the atomic mass for the element oxygen. Consequently, one