elementai

Elementai (plural of elementas) is a Lithuanian term used for the basic constituents that compose a system. In everyday scientific and educational writing it is commonly used for chemical elements as well as for mathematical elements. The word also appears in computing and information technology to describe parts of data structures and documents.

In chemistry, elementai are the chemical elements, pure substances that consist of a single type of atom and cannot be broken down into simpler substances by chemical means. Each element is identified by its atomic number and symbol, and the periodic table organizes all known elements. Elements can occur naturally or be synthesized in laboratories. Their properties—such as reactivity, phase, and electronegativity—vary widely, with well-known examples including hydrogen, carbon, iron, and uranium.

In mathematics, an element is a member of a set. The plural elementai refers to multiple such members. The concept is denoted by the membership relation, often written with the symbol ∈, as in 2 ∈ {1, 2, 3}. Elements form the building blocks of sets, sequences, and algebraic structures, and discussions frequently specify which elements belong to which sets.

In computing and information technology, elementai can denote elements of data structures (such as elements of an array) or elements of a document in a markup language, such as HTML elements (for example, div, p, or span), which define parts of a page, interface, or data model.

Etymology and usage: the term derives from the Latin elementum, passing into Lithuanian as elementas. In Lithuanian, elementas covers scientific as well as more general notions of a fundamental part or component of a whole.