PRACTICAL CHEMISTRY, 



PHARMACEUTICAL AND MEDICAL, 



I. 



INTRODUCTION. 



FUNDAMENTAL PROPERTIES OF MATTER. RESULTS OF THE 



ATTRACTION BETWEEN MASSES, SURFACES, AND 



MOLECULES. 



As the science of chemistry has for its object the study of 

 the nature of all substances or of all varieties of matter, it is 

 necessary first to consider some of the properties which belong 

 to every kind of matter and are known as essential or funda- 

 mental properties. The fundamental properties of matter having 

 a special interest for those studying chemistry are: extension, 

 divisibility, porosity, and indestructibility. 



1. EXTENSION OR FIGURE. 



Matter is anything occupying space, and this property is 

 known as extension. All bodies, without exception, fill a cer- 

 tain amount of space. That portion of matter lying within the 

 surrounding surface of a body is called its mass. We dis- 

 tinguish three different conditions of matter, namely : Solids, 

 Liquids, and Gases. These conditions of matter are known as 

 the three states of aggregation, and we will now consider the 

 peculiarities of matter when existing in either of these states. 



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