third way to determine how many equivalent protons there are is to look at the atom attached to. the proton (usually a carbon) and observe what that atom is bonded to, and then the atom bonded. to that, all the way until a difference is observed.
The goal of imperialism is  to exercise economic and political control over a dependent territory. Such control is often accomplished through settlement, sovereignty or less direct methods.
The Russian leader Lenin suggested that imperialism was the highest form of capitalism, claiming that imperialism developed after colonialism, and was distinguished from colonialism by monopoly capitalism.