Question #b5931
1 Answer
To achieve a lower energy state.
First off, kudos to having "want" in quotation marks! Atoms don't "want" to do anything. Rather, they show a tendency to achieve electron configurations that are stable. Remember, elements don't behave in accordance with our rules, instead we establish these rules, theories and laws due to what we observe in nature.
In some cases, this increase in stability requires these elements to form bonds with other elements. Typically, this bonding results in electron configurations that fill all of the available orbitals, whether this be through electron transfer (in the case of ionic bonding) or "sharing" (in the case of covalent bonding).
Noble gases are relatively stable because they already have a stable electron configuration. Other elements do not, and must achieve this stable electron configuration through bonding.
