Chemistry is the study of matter and energy and the interactions between them Hypothesis A hypothesis is an educated guess,

based on observation. Usually, a hypothesis can be supported or refuted through experimentation or more observation. A hypothesis can be disproven, but not proven to be true. Example: If you see no difference in the cleaning ability of various laundry detergents, you might hypothesize that cleaning effectiveness is not affected by which detergent you use. You can see this hypothesis can be disproven if a stain is removed by one detergent and not another. On the other hand, you cannot prove the hypothesis. Even if you never see a difference in the cleanliness of your clothes after trying a thousand detergents, there might be one you haven't tried that could be different. Theory A scientific theory summarizes a hypothesis or group of hypotheses that have been supported with repeated testing. A theory is valid as long as there is no evidence to dispute it. Therefore, theories can be disproven. Basically, if evidence accumulates to support a hypothesis, then the hypothesis can become accepted as a good explanation of a phenomenon. One definition of a theory is to say it's an accepted hypothesis. Example: It is known that on June 30, 1908 in Tunguska, Siberia, there was an explosion equivalent to the detonation of about 15 million tons of TNT. Many hypotheses have been proposed for what caused the explosion. It is theorized that the explosion was caused by a natural extraterrestrial phenomenon, and was not caused by man. Is this theory a fact? No. The event is a recorded fact. Is this this theory generally accepted to be true, based on evidence to-date? Yes. Can this theory be shown to be false and be discarded? Yes. Law A law generalizes a body of observations. At the time it is made, no exceptions have been found to a law. Scientific laws explain things, but they do not describe them. One way to tell a law and a theory apart is to ask if the description gives you a means to explain 'why'. Example: Consider Newton's Law of Gravity. Newton could use this law to predict the behavior of a dropped object, but he couldn't explain why it happened. As you can see, there is no 'proof' or absolute 'truth' in science. The closest we get are facts, which are indisputable observations. Note, however, if you define proof as arriving at a logical conclusion, based on the evidence, then there is 'proof' in science. I work under the definition that to prove something implies it can never be wrong, which is different. If you're asked to define hypothesis, theory, and law, keep in mind the definitions of proof and of these words can vary slightly depending on the scientific discipline. What is important is to realize they don't all mean the same thing and cannot be used interchangeably. Temperature is a number. That number is related to energy, but it is not energy itself. Temperature is a number that is related to the average kinetic energy of the molecules of a substance. Heat, on the other hand, is actual energy measured in Joules or other energy units. Heat is a measurement of some of the energy in a substance. When you add heat to a substance, you are adding energy to the substance. This added heat (energy) is usually expressed as

an increase in the kinetic energies of the molecules of the substance. If the heat (energy) is used to change the state of the substance, say by melting it, then the added energy is used to break the bonds between the molecules rather than changing The specific heat of water is 4.18 J/g C exothermic reaction is a chemical reaction that releases heat. It is the opposite of an endothermic reaction. Solids Keep their shape unless they are broken Do not flow Cannot be compressed (keep the same volume) Liquids Do not keep their shape, they take the shape of the container thay are in Flow Cannot be compressed (keep the same volume) Gases Do not keep their shape, they completely fill the container that they are in Flow, spread out quickly from where they are to start with (this is called diffusion) Can be compressed (squashed into a much smaller volume) A chemical element is a pure chemical substance consisting of one type of atom distinguished by its atomic number, which is the number of protons in its nucleus. A material that is homogeneous is uniform in composition or character; one that is heterogeneous lacks uniformity in one of these qualities. A chemical compound is a pure chemical substance consisting of two or more different chemical elements