  A statistical mechanical study of fluidized granular media is presented.
Using a special energy injection mechanism, homogeneous fluidized stationary
states are obtained. Molecular dynamics simulations and theoretical analysis of
the inelastic hard-disk model show that there is a large asymmetry in the
two-particle distribution function between pairs that approach and separate.
Large velocity correlations appear in the postcollisional states, due to the
dissipative character of the collision rule. These correlations can be well
characterized by a state dependent pair correlation function at contact.
  It is also found that velocity correlations are present for pairs that are
about to collide. Particles arrive to collisions with a higher probability that
their velocities are parallel rather that antiparallel. These dynamical
correlations lead to a decrease of the pressure and of the collision frequency
as compared to their Enskog values. A phenomenological modified equation of
state is presented.
