The Three States of Matter: Solid, Liquid and Gas
The three states of matter are solid liquid and gas. This is a fairly basic idea in science that people learn as early as middle school. However, there is much more behind this concept than most people ever know about. One of the best ways to explain the very complex science behind the three states of matter is by presenting an example that everyone is familiar with: water. Not everyone (and sometimes no one) gets to see all three states of a substance. However, everyone has seen water as a solid (ice), and as a liquid, and although it is much harder to see water vapor (gas) we all have experience of it.
The biggest difference between these states of water are the assembly of the water molecules and their interaction with each other. Lots of complex thermodynamics enters into this explanation, but the simple version is simply as follows. Molecules like to be as free to move around in as many ways as possible. They can do this best by being in the form of a gas. When water molecules are in the form of ice they are rigidly held together by strong interactions which is why gas is always the “preferred” state to be in.