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Monday, July 1, 2019

Reactions and interactions

Reactions and Interactions are the things that happen all the time around you and inside of you. Salt dissolving in water, plants using sunlight to make food and oxygen, static electricity making your socks stick together in the dryer, and candles burning are all examples of reactions and interactions.

Interactions involve changes in the physical properties of matter. Physical properties are those that can be measured or experienced without altering the identity of the matter. Physical properties include size, volume, density, color, odor, taste, and texture. Physical properties also include things such as phase (solid, liquid or gas), particle size and ability to dissolve.

Physical properties can be observed, measured and even changed through physical changes. In other words, physical changes are those that alter the appearance of matter, but not the identity of matter. For example, melting ice and then boiling the water produced causes a change in the appearance of water, but both ice and steam are water. Dissolving salt in water is another physical change. The salt can still be tasted in the mixture created will still taste like salt and if the water evaporates the salt regains its original form.

Reactions involve changes in the chemical properties of matter. Chemical properties are those that can only be measured or experienced by altering the identity of matter. For instance, paper burns. This can only be seen by lighting the paper on fire, resulting in the loss of the paper and the creation of water, carbon dioxide and ash. Changes of this nature, those that demonstrate chemical properties, are called chemical changes.


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