Matter or Not Flashcards
A piece of plasticine was placed in a beaker.
(a) Why must the plasticine be fully submerged ?
(b) When you lower the plasticine into the water, why does the the water level go up.
(c) What properties of plasticine and water allows the volume of the plasticine to be calculated as the volume of water displaced?
(a) It is to ensure that the full volume of the plasticine displaces the water, so that the volume of water displaced is equal the full volume of the plasticine.
(b) Plasticine has volume and takes up the space that was initially occupied by the water. It displaces the water and causes the water level to go up.
(c) Both the plasticine and water take up space and have definite volume.
State the properties of solids, liquid and gases.
Solids have a definite shape and volume.
Liquids have a definite volume and do not have a definite shape
Gases do not have a definite shape or a definite volume
All have a definite mass.
A piece of plasticine can be molded into different shapes. Is it a solid, liquid or gases. Why
Plasticine is a solid as it has a definite shape and volume. It does not change its shape when there is no force acting on it. Liquids and gases do not have definite shape even if no force is acting on it .
A sponge can be compressed. Is it a solid, liquid, or gas. Why.
A sponge is a solid as it has a definite shape and a definite volume. It can be compressed because there are spaces inside the sponge that are filled with air. when the air is squeezed out, the sponge itself can no longer be compressed and thus it has a definite volume, which is one of the properties of solids.
One end of a straw was sealed and pushed into a beaker of water. A small amount of water had entered had entered the straw.
Explain why a small amount of water had entered the straw but could not fill the straw to the same level of water in the beaker.
Air can be compressed allowing a little water to enter the straw. Air occupies space and is trapped in the straw, thus the water can not fully enter to displace the air
A tissue was taped to the bottom of a cup. The cup was inverted and pushed into a basin of water without tilting. The tissue remained dry. Explain how this happened.
Air occupied the space in the cup, preventing water from entering the cup to displace the air and wet the tissue.
Three set-ups, A, B and C, each with a beaker of similar volume and shape. Each beaker has an opening of different size at its side, A is 2mm, B is 4mm, C is 6mm. An identical funnel was placed above each beaker and 500 ml of water was poured into each funnel.
List the set-ups from the shortest to the longest time taken for all the water to flow into the beaker.
Explain the reason for the difference in time taken for all the water to flow into the beaker between Set-up A and C.
C,B,A.
The beaker in Set-up C has a bigger opening at the side to allow air to escape faster than in Set-up B and A and this allows the water to enter the beaker more quickly to displace the air.
Object R was put in a measuring cylinder and the top part was above the water level. Explain why you can not obtain an accurate volume measurement of object R.
R is not fully submerged and therefore will not displace the volume of water corresponding to its volume.
Two inflated balloons of similar size were balanced on two sides of a balancing scale What would happened if to side Q when a small slit is made to the balloon at side P? Explain why
It moves downwards. The gas in the balloon one side P escaped. The balloon on side Q has a greater mass of air remaining than balloon P, causing side Q to move downwards
A submarine floats on the surface of the sea when the valves for its water tank are closed. It is able to sink by opening its valves and the water tank will be partially filled. Use your understanding of properties of matter to explain how the submarine sinks.
When the valves are open, air escapes through the open valves. Hence the seawater can enter the tanks to displace the air. Sea water has a greater mass than air. causing the submarine to sink.