Question 2
Work in pairs. Read the extract below. Then answer the question.
Imagine a glass jar holding 118 types of building blocks. Every type is a slightly different colour, size and shape. Each represents an atom of a different element of the Periodic Table. With enough jars, you can use the blocks to build anything if you follow a few simple rules.
A combination of different types of blocks is called a compound. Within the compound, chemical bonds are what ‘glue’ each block together.
Bonds also determine the structures and properties of all substances. We look at a material’s bonds if we want to know whether a material dissolves in water, whether a material conducts electricity, or whether we can use a material as a lubricant.
When different types of building blocks of matter are combined, what do they form?
Imagine a glass jar holding 118 types of building blocks. Every type is a slightly different colour, size and shape. Each represents an atom of a different element of the Periodic Table. With enough jars, you can use the blocks to build anything if you follow a few simple rules.
A combination of different types of blocks is called a compound. Within the compound, chemical bonds are what ‘glue’ each block together.
Bonds also determine the structures and properties of all substances. We look at a material’s bonds if we want to know whether a material dissolves in water, whether a material conducts electricity, or whether we can use a material as a lubricant.
When different types of building blocks of matter are combined, what do they form?
