Matter - Anything that has mass and volume.

• Mass - A measurement of the amount of matter in a object (grams).
• Volume - A measurement of the amount of space a substance occupies.

Things that are matter:  air, food, water, dirt

Things that are not matter:  heat, light, energy, temperature

States of Matter

• Solid - A substance with definite volume and shape.  Solids do not flow and therefore do not conform to the shape of their containers.
• Liquid - A substance with definite volume but without definite shape.  Liquids flow freely and therefore conform to the shape of the walls of their container;  liquids cannot, however, expand to fill their container.
• Gas - A substance with no definite volume or shape.  Gases flow freely; gases can expand to fill their container, or they can be compressed into a smaller container.
• Plasma - A highly ionized gas containing an approximately equal number of positive ions and electrons.

Law of Conservation of Matter

• Matter, like energy, is neither created nor destroyed in any chemical process.

Next:  "Intensive Versus Extensive Properties"