Final answer:
Nonmetals are located in the upper right portion of the periodic table and have different properties and behaviors compared to metals. They include gases, liquids, and solids, and exhibit a variety of chemical behaviors. Nonmetals are important in biology.
Step-by-step explanation:
The nonmetals are elements located in the upper right portion of the periodic table. Their properties and behavior are quite different from those of metals on the left side.
Under normal conditions, more than half of the nonmetals are gases, one is a liquid, and the rest include some of the softest and hardest of solids. The nonmetals exhibit a rich variety of chemical behaviors. They include the most reactive and least reactive of elements, and they form many different ionic and covalent compounds.
This section presents an overview of the properties and chemical behaviors of the nonmetals, as well as the chemistry of specific elements. Many of these nonmetals are important in biological systems.