What is Matter?
Matter is something that has mass and occupies space. Everything we see and feel around us is called matter.
There are three states of matter:
- Solid
- Liquid
- Gas
States of Matter
But what is matter made of? Let us look at a few theories and philosophies that tried to answer this question.
History of atoms
- In 500 BC, an Indian philosopher named Maharishi Kanad hypothesised the idea of indivisible particles of a matter and named them parmanu.
Maharishi Kanad
- Pakudha Katyayama, another Indian philosopher, made modifications in Maharishi Kanad’s work and stated that such indivisible particles come in different combinations to make up different kinds of
- Greek philosophers – Democritus and Leucippus, postulated that the indivisible particles make up the complete matter and named it Atomos.
Democritus and Leucippus
- In the late 18th century, French nobleman and chemist, Antoine Lavoisier, laid the foundation of chemical science and stated the difference between elements and compounds.
Antoine Lavoisier
The two most important laws of chemical combination were established based on
Antoine Lavoisier’s research:
- Law of conservation of mass
- Law of constant proportions