Question

A student half fills a jar with rice and tightens the jar’s lid. The student wants to use the jar of rice to model particle motion of a substance in any state of matter. How can the student use the jar of rice to model particle motion of a substance in each state of matter: solid, liquid, and gas?

A) By shaking the jar vigorously for solid, gently tilting for liquid, and releasing the lid slightly for gas
B) By compressing the jar for solid, adding water for liquid, and heating the jar for gas
C) By tapping the jar lightly for solid, adding more rice for liquid, and creating a vacuum for gas
D) By freezing the jar for solid, adding a small amount of water for liquid, and opening the lid completely for gas

Answer 1

The student can lightly tap the jar to model a solid, gently tilt it back and forth to model a liquid, and release the lid slightly to model a gas, each action reflecting the particles' behavior in the three common phases of matter.

Step-by-step explanation:

To model particle motion of a substance in each state of matter using a jar of rice, the student could use the following methods:

• For a solid, the student could tap the jar lightly to represent the particles vibrating in place as they do in a solid structure.
• For a liquid, the student could gently tilt the jar back and forth to signify the fluid motion of particles in a liquid, which are close together but can move past one another.
• For a gas, the student could release the lid slightly to signify the high energy and rapid movement of gas particles that would expand to fill any available space.

Each of these actions would help demonstrate essential properties of the three common phases of matter, namely solids, liquids, and gases.