The 5 Properties of Water

1. Water is the "Universal Solvent"
• Water is able to dissolve so many things because water is a polar molecule, with the hydrogen side of the molecule slightly positively charged and the oxygen side slightly negatively charged. Thus, water can dissolve both positively and negatively charged molecules.
• Water is also able to dissolve so many substances because of the constant ionization of the H20 compounds. The ionization allows things to dissolve because if a substance is positively charged it will be attracted to the negatively charged OH molecule, and if something is negative it will be attracted to the positively charged H molecule.
2. Water is Adhesive
• Water molecules stick to other things, whether they are solids, liquids, or gasses.
• The adhesion of water allows for capillary action (when water "climbs up" on something).
3. Water is Cohesive
• Water molecules stick to themselves.
• The surface tension of water is caused by the hydrogen bonds which exist between the polar molecules of water (H20). The molecules are bonded together and therefore cause the surface tension. This is why in class we were able to have a paperclip rest on the top of the water in the beaker without breaking the surface.
4. Water has a high specific heat
• Water has a high specific heat (amount of energy necessary to raise 1 gram of a substance 1 degree in Celsius) because the water molecules are bonded together with hydrogen bonds, and it takes a lot of energy to shake the and break them up. 
5. Water has a density of 1 (gram per mL)
• Water has a density of exactly one which is important because if something has a density greater than 1, it will sink in water, and if something has a density less than 1, it will float.
• Water is also the only thing that is less dense when it is in its frozen form (ice). This is because when water is in liquid form, the molecules are packed very tightly together because of the hydrogen bonds. But, when water is frozen the molecules actually spread out a little because water molecules freeze in a geometric pattern, in turn reducing water's density.