What do the four elements most abundant in life- carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen- have in common? Chemistry Matter Elements 1 Answer SagarStudy Oct 26, 2016 All the #4# elements given in question have unpaired electrons in their valence shells. Answer link Related questions What periodic table elements are radioactive? How can the periodic table be used to predict the properties of the elements? How can elements have different isotopes? How can elements be broken down? How can elements properties be predicted? What is a chemical element? What element in the fourth period of the periodic table has 5 valence electrons? How are chemical elements diffrent from chemical compounds? What does organic chemistry study? How do elements change from left to right in the periodic tabale? See all questions in Elements Impact of this question 9706 views around the world You can reuse this answer Creative Commons License