They did this research almost a hundred years ago. The s and p electronics are the most active chemically and there are 8 of those in each level. The electron configuration if the nearest noble gas is usually the most stable chemically.

This is especially true of the non-metallic elements in the top-right corner which are most often present in large organic molecules. C,N,O and the halogens. P and S are interesting exceptions! They can have 10 and 12 instead of just 8.