What
is Matter?
Matter is anything that has
mass and takes up space. On earth matter can be in three states: solid,
liquid, or gas. As temperature increases matter changes state from
solid to liquid to gas. If temperature decreases matter changes state
from gas to liquid to solid.
Matter is made up of tiny
particles called
atoms and molecules. An atom is the simplest form of
matter. A molecule is two or more atoms joined together. Atoms and
molecules are the basic building blocks for the simplest things on
earth--elements.
There are over 100 known
elements on earth. When elements chemically combine they form new
substances called compounds. Examples of compounds are water (made from
Hydrogen and Oxygen) and Salt (made from Sodium and Chlorine).
Sometimes substances can be
mixed together but keep their own properties. This is called a
mixture. If one substance in a mixture dissolves in another substance
this is special type of mixture called a solution.
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