- The document discusses the early theories of what matter is made of, from a single element to four fundamental elements proposed by Empedocles. It introduces the atomic theory of Leucippus and Democritus that matter is composed of indivisible atoms. It also covers the
3. The earliest belief of Greek
philosophers was that matter was
made up of a single element.
4. Anaximenes (545 BCE)
-Asserted that the primal element
that makes up a matter was air.
Thales of Miletus (6th Century
BCE)
-Thought it was air.
Heraclitus (540-480 BCE)
-Believed it was fire.
Empedocles (490-430 BCE)
-Later proposed that all matter is made up
of four fundamental elements namely;
Earth, Air, Fire and Water
5. The varying proportions of
these element in different
materials supposedly rendered
the different characteristics
and behavior of the materials.
For instance, a stone was
thought to contain mostly of
earth, while a rabbit was
believed to contain large
proportion of water and fire
which makes it soft and gives
it life.
6. The problem with this idea, however, stemmed
from the fact that when materials are broken
down, they never resemble the fundamental
elements Empedocles proposed. Because of
this, an important concept was introduced now
known as the
Law of Constant Proportions which states
that…
all things of the same type have the
same proportions of the elements that
compose them.
7. Leucippus (440 BCE) and his student
Democritus (460-370 BCE)
-Wondered what would happen to a
piece of gold if it is cut unevenly. The two
philosophers concluded that there must be a
smallest unit of gold that cannot be broken
down without it ceasing to be gold. They
called this unit Atomos, meaning ‘uncuttable’.
The main theory of Leucippus and
Democritus’ theory include the following:
All matter is made up of atoms that are too tiny to
be seen by the naked eyes. They cannot b broken
down further into smaller portions. All forms of
matter result from the coming together or breaking
apart of atoms.
Atoms are in constant motion around an empty
space called void.
Atoms are completely solid
Atoms are uniform, with no internal structure.
Atoms come in different shapes and sizes.
8. Epicurus of Samos (341-270
BCE)
-popularized atomism, the
philosophy that matter is made
up of atoms. He further enhanced
the theory by proposing different
types of atoms have different
weights, and that all atoms have
the same speed regardless of size.
Unfortunately, this philosophy
was highly opposed by the more
historically famous philosophers
including Plato and Aristotle.
9. Aristotle agreed with Empedocles that all
matter was made up of four fundamental
elements in varying proportions.
He also suggested that all elements could
be transformed to another-a pioneering
idea to the field of alchemy.
Aristotle also added the fifth element
Aether, which supposedly made up
matter found outside of earth and the
moon.
Aristotle’s theory was recognized as a
Continuous Theory, which asserted that
matter can be divided indefinitely
without changing the fundamental
characteristics of the material-a direct
contrast to the Discrete Theory of the
10. Matter is anything that has
mass and volume.
Mass is the amount of matter,
while volume is the space it
occupies.
11. 3 Main states of matter
1. Solid
2. Liquid
3. Gas
4. Plasma
5. Bose-Einstein Condensate
12. Have definite shape and volume. The
particles in a solid are tightly packed
together, thus, solids are almost
incompressible. The particles vibrate
in a fixed position; they cannot move
around or slide past each other. Solids
have high densities and can expand
only slightly when heated.
13. A liquid has no definite shape but has a definite
volume. The particles in a liquid are close with one
another, but not as close as those in a solid. The
particles are not arranged in a rigid or orderly
manner; they can slide past each other, allowing
the liquid to flow freely and take shape in a
container in which it is placed. Liquids are almost
incompressible, but they tend to expand slightly
when heated. They generally have medium
densities.
14. Gases take the shape of their container. However,
they have no definite volume. A gas can expand to
fill any volume, thus it takes both the shape and
volume of its container. The particles in a gas are
usually much farther apart than those in a liquid.
Because of the large spaces between the particles,
gases are easily compressed into smaller volume
when pressure is increased, but they greatly
expand when heated. Gases also have low
densities.
15. Plasma is the fourth state of matter. Formed
by heating and ionizing a gas, plasmas are
made up of groups of negatively and positively
charged particles. Plasmas are not the same
as gases; they have neither a definite volume
nor a definite shape. They are often observed
in ionized gases, aurora borealis, lightning,
and comet tails.
16. Sir William Crookes is a British Chemist and
physicist who discovered the element thallium
in 1861. he was on of the scientists to
discover plasma, and in 1879, identified it as
the fourth state of matter. Crookes also
developed the Crookes tube and the
Spinthariscope-instruments used to study
cathode rays (streams of electrons) and
nuclear reactivity, respectively.
17. Produced when a cloud of bosons (type of
elementary particle of matter) is cooled to
temperatures very close to absolute zero
(T=0K) such that a large fraction of the
bosons condense. Bose-Einstein condensates
include superfluids like cold liquid helium,
and superconductors like the nucleons
inside a neutron star.
18. Seatwork #1
1. Describe the arrangement and behavior
of particles of the following substances:
Air
Alcohol
bottle
