6 CHANGES AROUND US

LET’S EXPLORE
Ÿ Introduction
Ÿ Classification of Changes
Ÿ Some other Ways to Bring a Change

Who am I
1.
?
I am a type of change.
2. You can reverse me just by switching the actions.
3. The conversion in the states of water is an example of mine.
________________________________________

“The proper use of science
is not to conquer nature
but to live in it”
–Barry commoner
Conversion of rock into soil
6.1 Introduction
Everything in the world changes with the passage of time, some of these
changes are obvious while some are not. There are certain objects that do not
seem to be changing at all but a change may also be detected in them. For
example; a rock could seem to be the same but over thousands of years, it
might eventually convert into soil. Similarly it seems like the Sun is always the
same but experts found that changes are constantly occurring on its surface.
We can clearly notice the various changes that occur all around us such as
nights turn into days, a seed initially develops into a bud then into a plant
and finally into a tree.
Changes include a variety of adjustments to the items in our environment.
When a change occurs, the status, location, form, size, colour, temperature,
composition or structure of the object changes.
We have seen several significant examples of changes in our daily lives like:
Drying of clothes, Fuel combustion, Boiling of water, Sowing of seeds
Mustard to oil, Milk changed into curd, Growth of plants & animals,
Changing of seasons.
In this chapter we will learn about all these different changes that are going
on around us in our day today life.

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 Brain Buzz
Although some changes are good for us, some are bad. We make an effort to speed up the positive changes
while reducing the speed of the negative ones. For example; fruits ripening is a good change therefore, we
use artificial means to fasten the ripening of fruits. On the other hand, spoilage of prepared food is a bad
change, we strive to prevent it by refrigerating the cooked food.

Pronunciation
6.2 Classification of Changes
Classification: The changes occurring around us can be classified into two major categories-
klaa-si-fi-kay-shn Reversible changes & Irreversible changes. Lets learn about them in details

(i) Reversible change

(a) Melting of chocolate
(b) Melting of ice
Reversible changes
A reversible change is a type of change that can be reverse by switching the
circumstances. For example; melting, boiling, evaporation, condensation etc.
The ice melts into water, which then boils and evaporates before condensing
back into water. Therefore, water changes states while maintaining its original
composition. Some other common examples of reversible changes could be-
Ÿ Melting of a chocolate
Ÿ Stretching of a rubber band
Ÿ Paper folding
Ÿ Balloon inflation

NCERT Activity
Take some dough and make a ball. Try to roll out a roti. May be you are not happy with its shape and
wish to change it back into a ball of dough again. Tell the type of change it is- reversible or irreversible?

A ball of dough and a rolled out roti

(a) Human growth
(b) Conversion of milk into curd
Irreversible changes
2. Irreversible change
An irreversible change is a type of change that cannot be reversed, not even
by altering the circumstances, like burning of paper, wood, candles etc.
Some other common examples of irreversible changes could be-
Ÿ Aging of living organisms
Ÿ Conversion of milk into curd milk
Ÿ Plant growth
Ÿ Rusting of iron

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 Activity
Classify the following as reversible or irreversible changes:
Changes Reversible/ Irreversible
1. Germination of seed _______________
2. Falling of rain _______________
3. Growth of a child into man _______________
4. Dry clothes to wet clothes _______________

Build Up
Q.: What is irreversible change?
Ans: The changes which cannot be reverse is known as irreversible change.

Runway
1. Give two examples of irreversible changes.
2. Odd one out-
Melting of an ice, burning of a paper, making balls of the dough
3. Define reversible change.
4. A change which cannot be __________ is called an irreversible change.
5. Melting of wax is a type of __________ change.

6.3 Some ways to Bring a Change

1. Physical & Chemical changes
Pick a stick and a piece paper, tear the paper into pieces and break the stick.
Can you get the original items back? However, the shape has changed but
nothing new has been formed as a result of this conversion. The changes in
which no new substance are formed are called physical changes.
Stretching of rubber
Evaporation, condensation, stretching and relaxing of rubber band etc.,
are the examples of physical changes.
Food For Thought
A change in which a new material is formed from the original substance is
Is burning of matchstick a called chemical change. Cooking of food & ripening of fruits are some of
physical change? the common examples of it.

Zoom In
Take a bowl, fill it with water, dissolve some salt in water to make a solution.
Now the solution tastes salty. Heat this mixture until the salt is the only
thing left after the complete water has evaporated. Try this out. Is the
flavour same as before? Which type of change is this- physical or chemical?

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 Activity
Take a candle and light it.
Now hold a little piece of paper over the candle flame.
Observe what happens after a few minutes.
What is the name of the newly formed substance?
Is it possible to get the paper back from this substance?
(Note: This should only be carried out with adult supervision.) Fig: Burning of paper

2. Natural and Man-made changes

The changes that result from natural processes are known as natural changes.
Seasonal changes, water cycle, turning of nights & days, earthquakes, rain,
(a) Earthquake (b) Flood
volcanoes, snowfall etc., are the examples of natural changes.
Natural change
Changes that are brought about & controlled by humans are known as man-
made or artificial changes. Construction of buildings & factories, cooking
of food, invention of vehicles are some of the examples of artificial changes.
(a) Manufacturing (b) Cooking
Man- made change 3. Slow & Fast changes
Some changes happen very gradually & might take several days, weeks or
even months to complete. For example; Earth takes a year to complete one
rotation around the sun, a child develops into an adult over a number of years.
It takes a lot of time for underground plants to transform into coal. Such
Slow change changes are known as slow changes.
It might be tough to determine the length of time in some changes as they
take place so fast within minutes or seconds. These changes include the
blowing of a balloon, shattering of glass, igniting of a matchstick etc.
These changes are known as fast changes.
Fast change

Activity
Food For Thought
Keep an iron nail on wet cotton for a few days and keep an eye on it. You
Growing of a seed into a will see that it changes colour after a few days. Rust is the reason behind
tree is a slow change or a this change. Now burn a piece of paper and note that how much time did it
fast change? take? You will observe that burning paper is a quick change whereas an
iron nail rusts slowly.
Factionary
The iron pillar at Qutab
Minar in Delhi has
remained rustproof since
so long. Iron nail (slow change) Burning of paper (fast change)

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 4. Periodic & Non-periodic Changes
Periodic changes are the types of changes that occur repeatedly after
regular intervals of time. Turning of day & night, swinging motion,
pendulum motion etc., are the examples of periodic changes.
Non-periodic changes are the changes that do not repeat themselves
regularly. Rusting of iron, falling of leaves, landslides, earthquakes etc., are
the examples of non-periodic changes.

Periodic change
Build Up
Q.: What is periodic change?
Food For Thought
Ans: A change which occurs at regular time intervals is called a periodic change.
Is sunrise a periodic change?

Is any Change is always desired?

Change is a necessary part of nature, but do we always want a change in our
surrounding?
We want some changes to happen because they are beneficial to us that is
why we consider these changes as desirable changes. We want the trees to
bear fruits, the flowers to bloom, the damp clothing to dry & the meals to be
cooked. So we consider them as desirable changes. Desirable change
We do not want some changes to happen since they are harmful to us. These
are considered as undesirable changes. These changes include mishaps like
earthquake, flood, food spoilage etc.
Some changes are both desirable & undesirable depending on the situation.
For example; we want the fire to be lit during cooking of food, the change is
desirable here but if the same fire destroys our things, the situation will Undesirable change
become reverse. Similarly, operating an air conditioner is preferable in the
summer but not during the winter.

Food For Thought NCERT Corner

How is rain sometimes
desirable and sometimes
undesirable?
Endothermic change
Exothermic change
You accidentally dropped your favourite toy and broke it. This is a change
you did not want. Can this change be reversed?
6. Endothermic & Exothermic changes
Ice melts when it is left out on the table without being heated. How does it
happened? Ice melts by absorbing heat from the surrounding.
The change in which heat is taken from the atmosphere is known as
endothermic change. For example; water vaporises by absorbing heat from
the surrounding, photosynthesis, cooking of food, melting of ice etc.
The change in which heat is released into the environment is known as
exothermic change. For example; fuel produces heat & light as it burns.
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 7. Changes Caused by Pressure
Hold a toothpaste tube upside down with the lid open, you will notice that
no paste comes out of it. But the paste start coming out when you push it,
i.e., put pressure on it. This is an example of a change brought on by force
or pressure.
Changes caused by pressure

Food For Thought
Can you think some more
such changes that could be
caused by pressure or force?
Pronunciation
Contraction:
kawn-trak-shn
Runway
1. What is an endothermic change?
2. Write one example of undesirable changes.
3. Is cooking of food a reversible change?
4. State true or false-
a. Burning of a paper is a irreversible change.
b. Changes that happen in a short duration are called fast changes.
5. Give two examples of slow change?
8. Changes caused by Expansion & Contraction
Do you know that all three states of matter-solid, liquid & gas change when
heated? Any material can be expanded by heating, although the extent of
the expansion varies for solids, liquids & gases.
Opposite to this the materials contract as they are cooled and the extent of
the contraction also varies for solids, liquids & gases.

Factionary
Changes caused by expansion On heating, solids expand least, whereas gases expand most. Similarly on
& contraction
cooling, solids contract least while gases contract most.

Activity
Aim: To understand expansion and contraction
Materials required:
Metal ball, ring set, Bunsen burner & a bowl of ice-cold water.
Procedure:
Ÿ Take the metal ball and the ring set.
Ÿ Fit the ball into the ring. The ball can go through the ring easily.
Ÿ Now heat the metal ball over the Bunsen burner for two - three minutes.
Ÿ Try to pass the heated ball through the ring. What do you observe?
Ÿ Now dip the metal ball, while it is still hot, into a bowl of ice-cold water.
Ÿ Try to fit the ball through the ring. Does the ball pass through the ring easily?
Observation: The ball becomes bigger.
Conclusion: The materials get expand as they get hotter.

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 Warm Up
1. Give one example of a slow change.
2. Fill in the blanks-
a. Burning of fuel is a __________change.
b. Substances__________ on heating.
3. Define non-periodic change
4. Give an example of irreversible change.
5. Why are some changes desired at one time and undesired at the other time?
6. Give two examples of physical change.
7. State true or false-
a. Melting of ice is a reversible change.
b. Burning of candle is irreversible change.
8. Give two examples of fast changes?
9. What is a periodic change?
10. Define desirable changes.

Now, I Know..
Ÿ A change which takes a long time to occur is called a slow change and that which takes less time to occur is
called a fast change.
Ÿ A change that can be reversed is called a reversible change and a change which cannot be reversed is called
an irreversible change.
Ÿ The changes which we require are called desired changes and the changes which we don't require are called
undesired changes.
Ÿ A change which occurs at regular time intervals is called a periodic change and a change which does not
occur at regular intervals of time is called a non-periodic change.
Ÿ The changes in which no new things are formed are called physical changes and the changes in which new
things are formed and old things cannot be obtained again by physical process are called chemical changes.
Ÿ A change which occurs by absorbing heat from the surroundings is called an endothermic change and a
change in which heat is given out to the environment is called an exothermic change.

Word Bank
• Reversible change: A change which can be reversed by removing the cause.
• Irreversible change: A change which cannot be reversed, even by removing the cause.
• Physical change: A change in which no new substance is formed.
• Chemical change: A change where new substances with different properties are formed.
• Fast change: A change that happen in a short duration of time.
• Slow change: A change that take a long time to complete.

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Mentor’s tool
Enable the students to know about the various types of changes that are happening in nature.

A. Choose the correct options:

1. Movement of pendulum is a/an-
(a) Irreversible change (b) Periodic change
(c) Chemical change (d) Undesirable change
2. The change which takes a long time to occur-
(a) Slow change (b) Fast change
(c) Periodic change (d) Irreversible change
3. Cooking of food represents-
(a) Physical change (b) Chemical change
(c) Reversible Change (d) None
4. Formation of soil from the rock is a type of-
(a) Reversible change (b) Slow change
(c) Fast change (d) None
5. The change which can be reversed is known as-
(a) Irreversible change (b) Reversible change
(c) Physical change (d) Fast change
B. Fill in the blanks:
1. Burning of wood is a type of __________ change.
2. Ice can be changed in to water by __________.
3. Blowing of a balloon is the example of __________ change.
4. The changes we do not require are called __________ change.
5. The turning of day and night is a __________ change.
C. State True or False:
1. The change which are brought about by nature are called natural change.
2. Burning of a candle is a chemical change.
3. Growing of child into adult is a physical change.
4. The changes that take a long time to complete are called fast changes.
5. Changing in seasons is type of natural changes.

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D. Answer the following in brief:
1. Mention the type of changes occur, when a candle burns.
2. Define fast change.
3. Give one example of slow change.
4. Define physical change.
5. What do you mean by desired change?
E. Answer the following questions in detail:
1. What are desired changes and undesired changes? Give two examples of each.
2. Differentiate between the slow and the fast changes.
3. Explain natural and man-made changes with the help of examples.
4. Explain the periodic and non-periodic change with example.
5. Describe the classification of the changes.

Let’s Evolve
Think and analyse...

1. Cutting of potato is a physical change, while cooking of it, is a chemical change. Explain how.
2. Milk can be change into curd but it cannot be changed back into milk.
3. Why does the hot glass break when it is kept under cold water?

HOTS
th
1. A list of reversible and irreversible processes was given to VI grade students. Teacher asked
them to separate out reversible processes from the following list.
I. Growth of plant II. Stretching of rubber band
III. Burning of paper IV. Changing of milk to curd
V. Dissolving of salt in water VI. Weathering of rocks
From the above list reversible processes are
(a) II, VI and VI (b) II and VI
(c) II and V (d) II, III and V
2. When air is blown into the balloon, which of the following cases may arise?
I. Only size of the balloon changes.
II. Only shape of the balloon changes.
III. Both size and shape changes.
IV. Only size changes whereas shape remains unaffected.
(a) Only I (b) I and IV (c) Only III (d) Only IV
3. Chemical change results in change in-
I. Energy II. Colour III. Temperature
The correct option is
(a) I and II (b) II and III
(c) I, II and III (d) Only chemical composition
4. Rolling of chapati and baking of chapati are the changes that-
(a) Can be reversed
(b) Cannot be reversed

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 (c) Can be reversed and cannot be reversed, respectively
(d) Cannot be reversed and can be reversed, respectively
5. Iron rim is made slightly smaller than the wooden wheel (which is to be covered by iron rim).
The rim is usually heated before fixing into the wooden wheel because on heating, the iron rim.
(a) Expands and fits onto the wooden wheel.
(b) Contracts and fits onto the wooden wheel.
(c) No change in the size takes place.
(d) Expands first, then on cooling contracts and fits into the wooden wheel.

Great Scientist

Jacob Berzelius 1779 – 1848.

A founder of modern chemistry: the first person to measure accurate atomic
weights for the chemical elements; discovered three elements: cerium, thorium and
selenium; devised the modern symbols for elements; described how chemical bonds
form by electrostatic attraction.

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 OLYMPIAD
TEASER

1. Which of the following is a reversible 6. Which of the following is NOT a feature of

change? a physical change?
(a) Melting of ice (a) It is reversible.
(b) Burning of matchstick (b) It is temporary.
(c) Changing of milk into curd (c) No new substance is formed.
(d) Germination of seed (d) The composition of the substance changes.
2. In a chemical change: 7. Choose the incorrect statement.
(a) The molecules of the substance do not (a) The heating of sugar is a permanent
change change.
(b) The molecules of the substance change (b) Sugar decomposes to form charcoal.
(c) The substance remains same (c) The crystallization of sugar is a
(d) Change is reversible chemical change.
3. Why is the rusting of iron termed as a (d) The powdering of sugar is a physical
chemical change? change
(a) It is a temporary change. 8. What kind of change do the batteries used
(b) It can be cleaned and the original in a wrist watch undergo?
substance can be recovered. (a) A physical change
(c) It is a slow reaction. (b) A periodic change
(d) A new substance is formed. (c) A chemical change
4. Which of the following are desirable (d) An endothermic change
changes? 9. The metal ring undergoes-
(i) Drying of clothes (a) No changes
(ii) Growth of weeds (b) Chemical changes
(iii) Cement getting hard when exposed to (c) Irreversible changes
moisture (d) Reversible changes
(iv) Desalination of sea water 10. A piece of iron can be used to make
(a) Only (i) and (ii) different kinds of tools. This is because-
(b) Only (ii) and (iii) (a) Iron is a metal and quite malleable
(c) Only (i) and (iv) (b) Heating causes a reversible change
(d) Only (i), (ii) and (iv) (c) Hot iron is soft and can be reshaped
5. Nitrogen reacts with hydrogen under high (d) All of these
temperature and pressure and forms 11. Identify a change that is NOT man-made
ammonia. Which type of change is and is irreversible.
undergone in the given example? (a) The burning of paper
(a) A chemical change (b) The stretching of a spring by a
(b) A physical change suspended weight
(c) An exothermic reaction (c) Soil erosion due to floods
(d) A natural change (d) The boiling of an egg

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