Matter
What is matter?
Matter is anything that has mass and takes up space.
Which state of matter usually keeps its own shape and has a definite volume?
Solid.
What science tool would you use to measure an object’s mass?
A Balance
A magnet attracts an iron nail. What property is being tested?
Magnetism, or attraction to a magnet.
Which property describes the amount of matter in an object: mass, volume, or temperature?
Mass.
You pour 200 milliliters of water from a narrow cup into a wide bowl without spilling any. What happens to the water’s shape and volume?
The water’s shape changes to fit the bowl, but its volume remains 200 milliliters.
What science tool would you use to accurately measure 35 milliliters of water?
A graduated cylinder.
A student shines a flashlight on two materials to compare how much light they bounce back. What property is being tested?
Reflectivity—how well a material reflects light.
What is volume?
Volume is the amount of space something takes up.
Which state of matter spreads out to fill its entire container?
Gas.
Which measurement describes mass: 45 grams, 45 milliliters, or 45 degrees Celsius? What do the other two measurements describe?
45 grams measures mass. Milliliters measure volume, and degrees Celsius measure temperature.
A small amount of sugar dissolves in water, but sand does not. What property helps distinguish these materials?
Solubility in water—how well a substance dissolves in water.
Name three physical properties you could observe about a wooden block without cutting it, burning it, or changing what it is made of.
color, texture, shape, size, or reflectivity
A student says, “The particles in a solid do not move at all.” Is this correct? Explain.
No. Particles in a solid vibrate in place. They do not move freely past one another as liquid particles do.
A graduated cylinder contains 40 milliliters of water. After a rock is completely submerged, the water level rises to 55 milliliters. No water spills. What is the rock’s volume?
15 cubic centimeters, equivalent to 15 milliliters of displaced water. Calculation: 55 − 40 = 15.
A metal spoon and a wooden spoon sit in hot soup. The metal spoon’s handle becomes hot more quickly. Which property explains this difference?
Thermal conductivity, or the ability to transfer heat. The metal transfers heat to the handle more quickly; wood is a poorer heat conductor.
Two boxes take up the same amount of space. Box A has a mass of 75 grams, and Box B has a mass of 150 grams. Which property is the same, and which property is different? Explain.
The boxes have the same volume because they take up the same amount of space. They have different masses; Box B contains more matter.
A closed, flexible plastic bottle contains only air. You can squeeze it so that the air takes up less space. Explain why using what you know about gas particles.
Gas particles have large spaces between them. Squeezing the bottle pushes the particles closer together. The spaces get smaller; the particles themselves do not shrink.
A student wants to find out whether changing a clay ball into a flat pancake changes its mass. Describe how the student should test this. Include one thing the student must keep the same.
Measure the clay’s mass, reshape it, and measure its mass again. Use the same balance and make sure no clay is added or lost. Its mass should stay the same because reshaping does not remove or add matter.
An electrical cord has metal wire inside and a plastic covering outside. Explain why materials with different electrical properties are used for these two parts.
The metal conducts electricity, allowing electric current to flow through the wire. The plastic is an electrical insulator, helping keep the current from reaching someone touching the cord’s outside. Conductivity is a property that helps determine how a material can be used.