Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Essay about modern history of chemistry
Essay about modern history of chemistry
Essay about modern history of chemistry
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Essay about modern history of chemistry
The history of chemistry makes a span of time reaching from ancient history to the present. By 1000 BC, ancient civilizations used technologies that would eventually form the basis of the various branches of the subject. Examples include extracting metals from ores, making pottery and glazes, fermenting beer and wine, extracting chemicals from plants for medicine and perfume, rendering fat into soap, making glass, and making alloys like bronze.
The science of chemistry, alchemy, was unsuccessful in explaining the nature of matter and its transformations. However, by performing experiments and recording the results, alchemists set the stage for modern chemistry. The distinction began to emerge when a clear differentiation was made between chemistry and alchemy by Robert Boyle in his work The Skeptical Chemist (1661). While both alchemy and chemistry are concerned with matter and its transformations, chemists are seen as applying scientific method to their work.
Chemistry is considered to have become a full-fledged science with the work of Antoine Lavoisier, who developed a law of conservation of mass that demanded careful measurements and quantitative observations of chemical phenomena. The history of chemistry is intertwined with the history of thermodynamics, especially through the work of Willard Gibbs.
Society had a lot of questions for chemistry never really knew what it was till they built schools and started to experiment and find answers for remarkable things like where we came from , the periodic table , cycles of life. The question is how was a life without answer, a life full of questions? I believe life/society, has got better and increased our knowledge about the things we didn’t know at first. Society has really ta...
... middle of paper ...
...nd we even use it in when dying our hair. There are many elements that we use every day fluorine. Though it is one of the most highly reactive and aggressive elements, it keeps our teeth healthy (used in toothpaste and in tap water). NITROGEN: almost 80% of the air is made up of nitrogen. We use it to breath. Without it we would have no DNA, no proteins, or even no muscles. SILICON: silicon is in sand on the beaches, and in the window panes. Its electrical conductivity allows PCs, mobile phones, cars, TVs and cameras to work. HYDROGEN: almost absolutely everywhere. In water, us humans, plants and animals. ALUMINIUM: used in alloy rims, train carriage they are even recycled. So my theory is that without the founding of chemistry or discovery we wouldn’t be nearly as far as we are right now in society and I thank anyone who have contributed to this movement of society
middle of paper ... ... The Web. 22 Feb. 2014. http://www.chemheritage.org/discover/online-resources/chemistry-in-history>.
Throughout history, the curiosities of obtaining knowledge of facts that show the operation of general laws have resulted into the improvements of today’s society. Such curiosity of chemical reactions coiled in the minds of John Dalton in the atomic theory, Rosalind Franklin with genetics, and most importantly Antoine Lavoisier the father of modern chemistry. All who, worked extensively to acquire the understanding that fascinated them most, chemistry. Another chemist who sought after the same knowledge was Stanislao Cannizzaro. Studying organic chemistry Cannizzaro explained how certain elements lacked the hydrogen atom in what is know n as the Cannizzaro Reaction.
Tin was the first man made element. Malaysia and South Africa are the main exporter to USA market. Electro microscopes, one of the best technology of our world that to know each small amount of atoms easily with 10.000 times of atoms images, Periodic table is one of the source of element of the 118 elements with their symbol and protons and electrons numbers. In the periodic table more than 70 elements are metallic. One of the hunting of the elements film secrets was made, you to get more understanding of correlation between the elements and life. To be sure, chemistry of life, rare earth elements, and radioactivity are the main components of the real life. Carbon (C), Hydrogen (H), Nitrogen (N), Oxygen (O), Phosphorus (P), and Sulfur (S) area the six elements of life, CHNOPS are also the basic elements of all living things. Phosphorus is the first element isolated from living
Elements are the basic building blocks of matter due to the fact that they are chemically the simplest substances. Whether we can find them in the air or in our gold/silver necklaces, elements are everywhere! One essential element is hydrogen, the first element on the period table (located under Group 1 as an alkaline metal) is composed of a single proton and electron; therefore having an atomic number and atomic mass of 1 and electron configuration of 1s1. In fact, hydrogen is the lightest, simplest and most commonly found chemical element in the universe (it makes up about 90% of the universe by weight). Interestingly enough, the heavier elements on the periodic table were either made from hydrogen or other elements that were made from hydrogen. The most common isotope formed of hydrogen is protium, with 1 proton and no neutrons. Hydrogen can also exist as both positively or negatively charged. The physical form of hydrogen at room temperature is a colorless and odorless gas. Hydrogen gas is extremely flammable and because of this chemical property, it is used as fuel for the main engine of space shuttles. Hydrogen is an important element and has received a lot of recognition throughout history for its usefulness.
1. J R Partington, A history of chemistry, volume 3 . London, UK: Macmillan, 1962
In reference to both the chemist novelists, they have accurately identified several compounds that have found their way in history, but failed to mention the relationship between themselves and the changes each compound created. For example, LeCouteur and Burreson do state, “The Bronze Age, when bronze was used for weapons and tools was followed by the Iron Age, characterized by smelting of iron and the use of iron implements.”4 These chemists do note of their existence, (of bronze and iron), but failed to go into an in-depth analysis as to how each of them incorporative their usage to today’s time. Bronze for example, had shown a transition from burins tools for hunting to a durable ax and adz heads for agriculture. This ultimate transition had set the stage for a new era, filled with new findings and affects for further implications, like other metallic elements. Elements, like tin, in which LeCouteur and Burreson, state was material that the buttons from Napoleon’s army coats where made out of. This material wasn’t able to support the freezing conditions of Russia, which is believe to led have fallen apart. Nevertheless, the predicament came to be if, “the lack of buttons meant that hands were used to hold garments together rather than carry weapons?”5 Within missing chemical structures like bronze
An element in chemistry is more than just an element; at least Chlorine is more than just an element. It is very useful in many ways that help people today. Chlorine is a common nonmetallic element belonging to the halogens; it is a heavy yellow irritating toxic gas; it is used to purify water and as a bleaching agent and disinfectant; occurs naturally only as a salt. People should know more about the uses of chlorine and why chlorine is used in many processes, for example; bleaching, and why we use it today. Everything has to start somewhere, and chlorine was produced many years ago.
Shapin and Schaffer reveal that through analysis of each factor, the study of science is constantly influenced by social and political factors and that the scientific method is socially constructed. Boyle’s first principle was the need to establish matters of fact; this was done through experience and was knowledge that could be quantified. The importance of this is that it marked a corner stone, and to be engaging in any type of new discovery rested on the fact that we are building upon a solid base. Boyle stated “If one wanted to produce authenticated experimental knowledge –maters of fact—one had to come to this space and to work in it with others”. This reveals the way in which scientific knowledge was socially constructed, as this limited who could view the experiment, and who was deemed trustworthy as a witness.
Sootin, Harry, and Gustav Schrotter.Robert Boyle : founder of modern chemistry. New York: F. Watts, 1962. Print.
The true beginnings of the modern periodic table are found in 1669 when alchemist Hennig Brand became the first person to discover an element, phosphorus. This was accomplished accidentally through an alchemical process using urine meant to produce the fabled philosopher’s stone that was highly sought after during the time period. The actual chemical process that occurred involved the reaction of sodium phosphate and organic compounds found in urine at the high heat at which brand was boiling the urine. This reaction produced carbon monoxide and elemental phosphorus which then condensed and solidified in the form of the white phosphorous allotrope, which has a tetrahedral structure, is insoluble in water, and is highly thermodynamically unstable. He named the element, though he was not aware it was an element at the time, phosphorous meaning “light-bearing” as white phosphorous glows strongly when it is exposed to air. A few years later, English alchemist and scientific investigator Robert Boyle was able to independently isolate phosphorus through an improved process by adding sand to the urine causing a reaction in which sodium phosphate and carbon from the urine reacted with silica forming sodium metasil...
Joseph Priestley and Antoine Lavoisier built the framework for modern chemistry during the enlightenment. Edward Jenner built a vaccine against smallpox, a deadly disease. These sort of scientific successes prompted European thinkers to use reason to find laws to govern the physical world, which they called natural laws. Natural laws are laws that govern human nature.
There are many ways to examine the subject of alchemy, including alchemy as a source of symbolism, psychology, and mysticism. It has also been an influence on the world view of various writers, artist, and musicians. The focus of this report is alchemy as a pre-chemistry, which gave a new impulse towards the preparation of medicinal remedies and also was a major influence on today's scientific investigations.Alchemy is an ancient art, practiced in the Middle Ages. The fundamental concept of alchemy stemmed from Aristotle's doctrine that all things tend to reach perfection.
This essay will discuss differences in motives which have driven ancient and modern science, arguing that 17th century alterations of power structures led to the ultimate division between modern and ancient science and the eruption of modern science as it is today. Comparisons will be drawn regarding knowledge accessibility, prevailing philosophies and ideologies, and the relationship between science and the church. Knowledge Accessibility: ancient secrets vs. modern community knowledge. To begin, a major shift in scientific thinking arrived with the dawn of the printing press and the new-found accessibility of knowledge. "Alchemy was from its origins a secret art;" (Roberts 66) secrecy was an absolute necessity in early science when a powerful recipe or method had been discovered, as such knowledge was a valuable commodity.... ...
Though many people fail to realize it, chemistry is a subject essential to everyday life, due to the fact that it is the branch of science that deals with the identification of the substances of which matter is composed. But what we must understand is that everything in the universe is composed of matter, hence chemistry is necessary in learning more about the world and universe that we live in. There are many careers and fields affiliated with chemistry that people pursue to learn more about the composition of the universe, but for now, let us examine the logistics of three of these careers. These three careers involving chemistry are geochemistry, environmental chemistry, and chemical engineering.
Science and Technology has been around from the beginning of time. It evolved from the everyday efforts of people trying to improve their way of life. Throughout history, humankind has developed and utilized tools, machines, and techniques without understanding how or why they worked or comprehending their physical or chemical composition. Before we go any further a definition has to be given for both Science and Technology because they are both different in their own right even though the two are almost indistinguishable. According to the Oxford Dictionary Technology can be defined as the knowledge or use of the mechanical arts and applied sciences, while Science can be defined as the branch of knowledge involving systematized observation and experiment. Science can be further divided into three separate categories; Pure, Applied and Natural Sciences. In addition technology is often defined as applied science, it is simply the application of scientific knowledge to achieve a specific human purpose, however, historical evidence suggests technology is a product of science.