What’s Matter?
Matter is anything that occupies space and has mass. So,
what’s mass?
Mass is the amount of material (stuff) packed in a given substance. What then is material or stuff? Material or stuff is basically made from atoms or molecules. So we can redefine mass at the particulate level as the amount of atoms or molecules packed in a given substance. So we are matter, and they are matter. Anything you can touch, smell, or taste is also matter. As a result, we can study and describe matter according to:
Check your understanding
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Is mass the same as weight? Explain
Answer!
Mass is not the same as weight. Mass is the amount of molecules packed in a given substance. This means that the amount of mass in an object is relatively constant. Weight is the gravitational pull on the mass of an object. In other words, weight (W) is usually defined as W = mass x the acceleration due to gravity. This acceleration due to gravity is the gravitational pull on an object. That means the gravitation pull can vary from place to place in the universe. For example, an astronaut can easily walks on earth, but floats when in outer space or on the moon.
2. Does energy have mass?
Answer!
Energy is formless and has no mass. It falls under what we call non matter.
Thus, the universe consist of what we can see and touch and what we can’t see and touch.
3. Is energy and mass related?
Answer!
Energy and mass are related by Einstein’s famous equation : E = mc2
Where E is energy, c is the speed of light.
This simply means that energy is produced when mass is multiplied by the square of speed of light.