General Chemistry Chapter 1 Notes Review

A collection of flashcards reviewing key concepts from the General Chemistry Chapter 1 lecture notes.

Matter

Anything that has mass and occupies space.

Element

The simplest form of matter that has distinct physical and chemical properties and cannot be broken down chemically.

Compound

A chemical combination of elements that has its own set of properties and a definite composition.

Mixture

A combination of two or more pure substances that are not chemically bonded together.

Homogeneous Mixture

A mixture that has the same composition throughout; also called a solution.

Heterogeneous Mixture

A mixture where the components are not uniform and can be separated by physical means.

Physical Property

A characteristic of a substance that can be observed without changing its chemical composition, such as color and melting point.

Chemical Property

The characteristic behaviors of a substance when it undergoes chemical changes.

Intensive Property

A property that does not depend on the amount of substance present, such as density.

Extensive Property

A property that depends on the amount of substance present, such as mass and volume.

Scientific Method

A systematic procedure involving observation, hypothesis formation, experimentation, and revision.

Hypothesis

An initial explanation based on observations and evidence that can be tested.

Theory

A broader explanation that is widely accepted based on a large body of evidence.

Scientific Law

A summary of a phenomenon that is consistently observed and described without explanation.

SI Base Units

Fundamental units for measuring length, mass, time, electric current, temperature, amount of substance, and luminous intensity.

Significant Digits

The number of digits in a measurement that reflect its precision, including all certain digits and one estimated digit.

Density

Mass per unit volume, a measure of how much mass occupies a given space.

Temperature Scale

A system for measuring temperature, specifically Celsius, Fahrenheit, and Kelvin.

Dimensional Analysis

A method of converting between units using conversion factors to ensure the correct units are used.

Law of Conservation of Mass

States that the total mass remains constant in a chemical reaction; mass is neither created nor destroyed.

Density

Mass per unit volume, a measure of how much mass occupies a given space.

Dimensional Analysis

A method of converting between units using conversion factors to ensure the correct units are used.

Metric Prefixes

Symbols used with SI units to denote multiples or submultiples of the base unit, such as kilo- (10^3), centi- (10^{-2}), and milli- (10^{-3}).

Accuracy

How close a measured value is to the true or accepted value.

Precision

How close multiple measurements of the same item are to each other.

Conversion Factor

A ratio derived from the equality between two different units that can be used to change from one unit to another without changing the value of the quantity.