SCIENCE 509CYCLES IN NATURE

CONTENTS

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1I. MATTER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Properties of Matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Experiment 509.A Volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Experiment 509.B Determine a Physical Property . . 10Changes in Matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Experiment 509.C Water in Liquid State . . . . . . . . 16Experiment 509.D Chemical and Physical Changes . 19Experiment 509.E Conservation of Matter . . . . . . . 23Structure of Matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

II. OTHER NATURAL CYCLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32Seasons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33Experiment 509.F Earth’s Movement Around the Sun 36Comets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41Experiment 509.G Evaporation of Water . . . . . . . . 44

III. GOD’S ORDER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48Balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49Precision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50Chemical Nature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Author: Barry G. Burrus, M.Div, M.A., B.S.Editor: Brian RingIllustrations: Brian Ring

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INTRODUCTION

God has created and designed our world with great love, care, and wisdom. He has placed a greatamount of order within His creation. We can also observe that there are many ordered cycles withinGod’s creation. These signs of God’s order and creation’s cycles are all around us in nature. Forexample, in previous LIFEPACS, you learned about the water cycle, carbon cycle, and chemical cyclein nature. You also learned about life cycles of plants and animals. Yet, there are many more cyclesthan these in God’s creation. The four seasons of the year — spring, summer, fall, and winter — arebut one example. The seasons change, yet they return again in a cycle from year to year.

In fact, the substance of all things that we can sense and observe — called matter — goes throughchange. Matter can also go through cycles. In this LIFEPAC®, you will study more about matter andthe properties of matter. You will learn about the structure of matter and how matter changes. Youwill also learn about other cycles in nature — like the seasons of the year. Finally, you will learn moreabout God’s order in all things that He has created.

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OBJECTIVES

Read these objectives. The objectives tell you what you should be able to do when you havesuccessfully completed this LIFEPAC.

When you have finished this LIFEPAC, you should be able to:

1. Identify the properties of matter.

2. Tell about the changes in matter.

3. Describe the structure of matter.

4. Explain the relationship between matter and the cycles of nature.

5. Describe some natural cycles.

6. Explain Bible accounts of God’s order in creation.

The Seasons of the Year Are a Cycle in Nature.

VOCABULARY

Study these new words. Learning the meanings of these words is a good study habit and willimprove your understanding of this LIFEPAC.

atmosphere (at’ m\ sfir). Air around the earth.

atom (at’ \m). The small particle that makes up molecules. Each atom is unique for a chemical element.

brittleness (brit’ l n\s). The physical property of being broken easily or of being broken with a snap.

characteristics (kar’ ik’ t\ ris’ tiks). Special features of something that help set one thing apart from another.

coma (ko’ m\). Cloudlike head of a comet.

combustibility (k\m bus’ t\ bil’ \t e). The ability of a material to burn. It is a chemical property of matter.

conduct (k\n dukt’). To channel through; heat or electricity can be channeled through conductors.

conservation (kon’ s\r va’ sh\n). The state of not being used up.

density (den’ sa te). The condition of being closely packed together. It is the amount of matter in a given volume of material.

displace (dis plas’). To take the place of something else.

distinguish (dis ting’ gwish). To perceive as being separate or different.

exist (eg zist’). To be; to have being.

hydrogen (hi-’ dr\ j\n). A colorless element commonly found in gas form. It burns

easily, and its mass is less than all other elements.

inertia (in er’ shu). To remain still if still, or continue moving if moving unless acted upon by an outside force.

molecule (mol’ \ kyül). The smallest part of matter that can still exist without a chemical change. It is made up of atoms of elements.

normally (nôr’ m\ le). In a regular way; commonly.

precise (pri si-s’). Exact or careful.

precision (pri sizh’ i-n). To be exact or accurate.

symbol (sim’ b\l). Something that stands for, or represents, something else.

volume (vol’ y\m). The amount that something fills in space.

Note: These words appear in boldface print the first time they are used in this LIFEPAC. If youare unsure of the meaning when you are reading, restudy the definition given in this LIFEPAC.

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Pronunciation Key: hat, a-ge, cãre, fär; let, e- qual, te.

rm; it, i-ce; hot, o- pen, ôrder; oil;

out; cup, pu. t, rüle; child; long; thin; /T-h/ for then; /zh/ for measure; /\/ represents /a/ inabout, /e/ in taken, /i/ in pencil /o/ in lemon, and /u/ in circus.

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INTRODUCTION

God created everything that exists, both seen andunseen. All that is seen includes the physicaluniverse. Things that are unseen include spiritualbeings, like the angels. Our focus in this LIFEPACwill be on things seen — the physical universe thatGod created. Every thing in the physical universeconsists of matter. Matter is the substance of whichall things in the physical universe are made. Fromthe smallest living cell to the greatest galaxy in theuniverse, all things are made of matter.

You are surrounded by matter. You stand on it. Youbreathe it. In fact, your physical body is made ofmatter. All objects consist of matter. They maydiffer a great deal in size, shape, andappearance, but they all consist of matter.

Matter has properties. Some properties ofmatter are common to all matter. Otherproperties are special or specific to eachkind of matter. This means that matter thatis similar has certain special characteristicsthat are common to all other matter of thesame kind. For instance, all matter composedof the metal iron has similar characteristics, orspecial properties. These special properties helpus to distinguish one kind of matter from another.You will learn more about common properties andspecial properties of matter in this section of theLIFEPAC.

Matter can change. Matter changes in many ways,including form, shape, and state. The changes inmatter are very orderly because of the properties ofmatter. You will learn more about changes inmatter in this section of the LIFEPAC.

All matter has structure. Matter consists of tinyparticles that give matter its basic structure. Youwill learn more about the particles of matter and themotion of these particles in this section of theLIFEPAC.

I. MATTER

All Things Are Made of Matter

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By studying the properties, changes, and structure of matter, you should better understand theimportance of matter in the cycles of nature. You should also be able to better appreciate the lovingcare and order that God has put into His creation.

PROPERTIES OF MATTER

All matter has properties. These properties arethe characteristics of matter. They are thevarious ways that we describe matter. Some ofthese properties are common to all matter.Other properties are special or specific to eachkind of matter. Let’s explore these common andspecial properties of matter.

Common properties. All matter in theuniverse has some common properties. Three ofthese common properties are volume, mass, andinertia. We can describe any matter as havingvolume, mass, and inertia. Let’s first considerthe property of volume.

Volume is the space taken up by matter. In fact,some scientists define matter as anything thatoccupies space. Objects of small volume do nottake up much space. Objects with larger volumes

SECTION OBJECTIVES

Review these objectives. When you have completed this section, you should be able to:

1. Identify the properties of matter.

2. Tell about the changes in matter.

3. Describe the structure of matter.

4. Explain the relationship between matter and the cycles of nature.

Restudy these words. They will appear for the first time in Section I of this LIFEPAC.

atom brittleness characteristics

combustibility conduct conservation

density displace distinguish

exist hydrogen inertia

molecule normally symbol

volume