Which of the following illustrates conservation?

Which of the following illustrates conservation?

A)Deirdre believes that five pennies have more value than two nickels.

B)Joseph saves his energy by brushing his teeth in the shower.

C)Rebekah recycles her glass bottles but not her cell phone batteries.

D)Scott knows that one piece of pizza cut into two slices is the same amount as cutting the same piece of pizza into three slices.

Answer: D)Scott knows that one piece of pizza cut into two slices is the same amount as cutting the same piece of pizza into three slices.

This option explains one of the major concepts in use in chemistry and other related disciplines known as the conservation of matter. In the context of the present discussion, conservation can be defined as the concept that could be expressed in such a way that the percentage of some property or quantity of the object remains constant even if the object’s form or appearance changes. In Scott’s particular case, he shows an understanding that the quantity of pizza is fixed and does not change no matter how it is split.

For what concerns the notion of conservation, is fundamental in many contexts, especially in Mathematics and Science. For instance, in mathematics, children gain these ideas when learning that juggling does not alter the total sum, or when dividing a whole, the parts do not redefine the whole’s amount. This is the foundation for complex numbers, fractions and algebra that is learned later on.

Conservation principles are principles that scientists stick to when solving problems. The law of conservation of mass suggests that matter cannot be both created and destroyed during the chemical reaction but is rather converted from one form to another. On the same note, the law of the conservation of energy maintains that energy cannot be created or destroyed within a system and can only be transformed into different forms.

The principles outlined by Scott are a rather basic, albeit unique way of explaining how these two tools work – pizza slices. I was trying to explain physical quantity to him and to demonstrate the idea I was showing that if a pizza was divided in two or divided into three pieces, there would be the same quantity of pizza. This can be extended to more elaborated contexts, for example conceiving that one litre poured into containers of various shapes is the same litre, or that clay moulded in various forms still weighs the same; comprehension of conservation is one of the major cognitive developments, as it implies that a quantity remains the same even if it is disguised behind other appearances.