Density is defined as which of the following?

Density is defined as which of the following?

• A. Mass per unit volume.
• B. Mass times volume.
• C. Volume per mass.
• D. The density of air only.

Answer: (A)

Density measures how much mass is packed into a given volume. It is defined as mass divided by volume, so density = mass per unit volume (m/v). This means that increasing mass in the same volume or shrinking the volume for the same mass raises density. The idea of mass times volume would give a different quantity with inappropriate units, not density. The inverse, volume per mass, is the reciprocal of density and is called specific volume, not density. And density isn’t limited to air; every material has its own density under given conditions.

Density measures how much mass is packed into a given volume. It is defined as mass divided by volume, so density = mass per unit volume (m/v). This means that increasing mass in the same volume or shrinking the volume for the same mass raises density. The idea of mass times volume would give a different quantity with inappropriate units, not density. The inverse, volume per mass, is the reciprocal of density and is called specific volume, not density. And density isn’t limited to air; every material has its own density under given conditions.