States of Matter: Basics

One of the first lessons everyone learns in physics and chemistry classes is the one about states of matter. Even to those of us who find these sciences difficult to understand, the lesson is pretty straightforward; every element can exist in three distinct states of matter: solid, liquid and gas. While for some that may seem implausible (for example, it’s hard to even imagine solid helium), any change of state is possible given the right temperature and pressure.

Well, this is the kind of experiments you perform with the educational app called States of Matter: Basics.

The Java application features simple and colorful animations that could be used to attract the attention of even the most disinterested student. Like most programs developed by the University of Colorado Boulder (or by the PhET Interactive Simulations project, to be more specific), States of Matter: Basics is designed as a teaching tool, meaning that it won’t make a lot of sense unless a teacher does a live voice-over that explains how it works.

Still, this app stays true to its name, in the sense that it really shows you just the basics and isn’t that difficult to understand.

In the first tab, called Solid, Liquid, Gas, you can choose to experiment with one of four types of molecules: neon, argon, oxygen and water. The molecules are located in a see-through recipient, which you can heat up or cool down as you please and watch how the atoms react. You can also change the state of the element to any of the aforementioned solid, liquid or gas; unfortunately you can’t turn gas into plasma with this app, which is a shame, because plasma is cool (well, not really).

The second tab is called Phase Changes and allows you pump more molecules into the recipient, while also adjusting the temperature and adding pressure with… an index finger pushing the lid down? While I can certainly recommend States of Matter: Basics for physics and chemistry classes, I would certainly advise you not to try any of that stuff at home.