A10.0 gram piece of metal is placed in an insulated calorimeter containing 250.0 g of water initially at 20.0°c. if the final temperature of the mixture is 25.0°c, what is the heat change of water?

a) 5230 j
b) −5230 j
c) 209 j
d) −209 j
e) 5440 j

The heat change of water is calculated through the equation,
                                H = m(cp)dT
where H is heat, m is mass, cp is the specific heat, and dT is the change is temperature. Substituting the known values,
                               H = (250 g)(4.18 J/g°C)(25°C - 20°C) = 5255 J
The nearest value to this is letter A. 5230 J.