Chapter 1 Introduction
This photo shows gold. How can you find out if an object is made of solid gold or simply coated with gold? What makes gold different from other metals? How is it possible to identify a metal based on its properties?
De Agostini Picture Library/Getty Images
CHAPTER 1
Defining Matter
2
In this chapter, you will study
the tools of chemistry
how matter is defined
how to measure mass, volume, and density
how types of matter differ from one another
With a simple procedure, you can make a copper penny look like gold. But is it really gold, or has something else been made? A way to tell real gold from other substances is to compare the properties of those substances with the properties of gold. Chemists study various properties of matter and use the results to compare and identify substances.