1. The problem is to write the electron configuration for the element gold (Au). 2. Gold has an atomic number of 79, meaning it has 79 electrons. 3. The electron configuration follows the Aufbau principle, filling orbitals from lower to higher energy levels. 4. The general order of filling is: 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, 4s, 3d, 4p, 5s, 4d, 5p, 6s, 4f, 5d, 6p, 7s, 5f, 6d, 7p. 5. For gold, the electron configuration is: $$\mathrm{Au}: 1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6 4s^2 3d^{10} 4p^6 5s^2 4d^{10} 5p^6 6s^1 4f^{14} 5d^{10}$$ 6. Note that gold has an exception in the 6s and 5d orbitals: instead of 6s^2 5d^9, it is 6s^1 5d^{10} due to increased stability from a filled d-subshell. 7. This configuration shows all 79 electrons distributed in their respective orbitals. Final answer: $$\mathrm{Au}: [\mathrm{Xe}] 6s^1 4f^{14} 5d^{10}$$ where [Xe] represents the electron configuration of xenon (1s^2 2s^2 2p^6 3s^2 3p^6 4s^2 3d^{10} 4p^6 5s^2 4d^{10} 5p^6).