Page 20 - Theory and Problems of BEGINNING CHEMISTRY
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CHAP. 1] BASIC CONCEPTS 9
1.15. Distinguish between a theory and a law.
Ans. A law tells what happens under a given set of circumstances, while a theory attempts to explain why that
behavior occurs.
1.16. Distinguish clearly between (a) mass and matter and (b) mass and weight.
Ans. (a) Matter is any kind of material. The mass of an object depends mainly on the matter that it contains. It
is affected only very slightly by the energy in it.
(b) Weight is the attraction of the earth on an object. It depends on the mass of the object and its distance
to the center of the earth.
