The History of Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of the composition and structure of materials and of the changes that materials undergo. It is also used in improving standards of living, making it possible for such substances as rubber, nylon, and plastics to be made from completely different materials. New materials and new properties of old materials are always being discovered. Some earlier products discovered from chemical reactions are ceramics, glass, and metals. Dyes and medicines were other early products obtained from natural substances. Some practical applications that chemistry is used for are to make stronger metals, improve soil, and the developments of live-saving drugs. Modern technology depends highly on these advancements; chemistry is a way of explaining our material world. Many people can't understand the importance of chemistry if they aren't planning on being a chemist. What many people don't realize is that chemistry provides employment to people in laboratories, universities, schools, and businesses. A knowledge of chemistry is also needed in fields such as medicine, agriculture, and engineering.
Modern chemistry is only about two centuries old. Earlier history of chemistry can be divided into three periods: "black magic," alchemy, and "primitive modern." Black magic was from prehistoric times to the beginning of the Christian Era. People believed that spirits controlled natural occurrences and they used magic to persuade these spirits to help in operations. During this period only some practical knowledge was gathered. Some elements such as iron, gold, and copper were recognized. There was also some progress in glass making, metalworking, and alloying. Thales and Aristotle contemplated the n...
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A chemist intends to comprehend how the universe is put together and how its substances can be changed to meet mankind's needs. All things can be classified as matter or energy and one can be converted to the other. Matter can also be classified by its physical state and according to its composition; matter also consists of particles in motion. Chemists have discovered that the whole universe is made up of more than 90 molecules. Chemistry involves the study of these elements, and is used to help in technology for human welfare. Many people don't seem to realize how many things they use every day have something to do with chemistry. There are many fields that involve chemistry, but for those that aren't involved in these fields, it is good to have some knowledge of the field to be able to appreciate what it has done to make your life as simple as it is today.
Chemists are the specialists in chemistry, that interact with chemical properties, and reactions. The earth is made up of different gases. Some of this gases are needed for life in the planet but other gases can be harmful to the living. Gas’s use in regular quantities are favorable to the earth. The world started to become more advance and had to use more of this gases to produce everyday objects and inventions by men. Little did we knew this chemicals we going to affect us in our life. Chemist Jose Mario Molina actually discovered that chlorofluorocarbons were affecting the ozone layer.
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Although some of the elements have been known for thousands of years, our understanding of many elements is still young. Mendeleev’s first Periodic Table contained only 63 elements, and about that many were discovered in the following 100 years. Just like countries, emperors, philosophers, and cities, elements have histories, too.“The Disappearing spoon” by Sam Kean, is a detailed history of the elements on the Periodic Table. Kean does a important job of telling every single element’s journey throughout the history of mankind: from the earliest times, when chemistry was intermingled with alchemy, to these days of modern chemistry. For example: Thallium is considered the deadliest element, pretending to be potassium to gain entry into our cells where it then breaks amino acid bonds within proteins. The CIA once developed a plan to poison Fidel Castro by dosing his socks with thallium-tainted
Chemistry is a science that study matter, its properties, and how and why substances combine or separate to form new substances. Chemistry is part of our life. Chemistry is involved since we grow up to everything we do. Chemistry is one of the physical science that helps us describe and explain our world. The chemistry that I will mostly focus is on biochemistry. Biochemistry is the study of chemical process that occurs in living organism. Delta 9 Tetrahydrocannabinol could have affects in the chemistry science through the brain, the body, and emotions. Tetrahydrocannabinol or THC is a very powerful chemical compared to other chemicals. The molecular formula for THC is C21H30O2. Scientific research says that delta 9 tetrahydrocannabinol can
Alchemy is seen as being “magic” or a fraud. When most people think of Alchemy they think of the people trying to change cheaper metals into gold, which well know today is a non-interconvertible element. It was upto the seventeen hundred the word alchemy and chemistry were used interchangeably. Alchemist made a huge contributions to today's modern world. People that practice alchemy help better the medicine of the time “ Of done by chemically extracting, treating, or purifying natural substances” (Principle, p. 37). Another contribution is they better the methods of smelting ore and working with the metals. There are still alchemistic methods changing chemical substances that are still used in chemistry, such as distillation, sublimation, and crystallization. These were not the only contributions that the alchemist taught us, it was some the experiments that they did that would teach us about the natural world. Just like astrology gave us famous astrologist there are famous alchemist too, just to name a couple is Robert Boyle the father of modern chemistry and Sir Isaac Newton one of the fathers of modern physics. In today's world when people do thing of alchemist they think of magic and sorcery. Look at the history without a modern view we can see that alchemist help advance that science
Chemistry is not used only in a lab environment, but it is used for every aspect of life. One way to look into a more in-depth view of chemistry is to apply it to a hobby, or something that may personally affect your everyday life. One of the biggest parts of my life and my main hobby is flying. Ever since I was little, I have always wanted to become a pilot. I am currently working towards my private pilot’s license and I am also attending the U.S. Air Force Academy starting in June to study aeronautical engineering. Since flying is such a large aspect of my life and is important to me, I wanted to break it down into an aspect of chemistry. I chose this topic because flying is very important to me and it will continue to be a large part of my life as it will end up being my career in the Air Force. Not only will researching the topic of aviation fuel help me to become a more knowledgeable pilot, but it will also help me to understand more about chemistry and expand on the concepts we have learned this semester. Chemistry is extremely important to planes and pilots. One of the most obvious aspects of flying that deals directly with chemistry is fuel. Without fuel, aircraft would not be able to run. The molecular formula of fuel and the combustion of fuel are just some parts that play into how fuel makes an aircraft run.
Have you ever had a question about the History of Chemistry, because I just had one recently about the invention of Pepto-Bismol. This invention of Pepto-Bismol was a key invention to the society because this helped people cure their rare disease in the late nineteenth century that people called diarrhea. Today, I am going to take you on an adventure through time that was the late eighteenth century to the early nineteenth century and you will come to see that Pepto-Bismol was an amazing invention. Let’s start with the beginning stages of the creation of Pepto-Bismol.
Chemistry has been around for a very long time. Chemistry is the branch of physical science that studies composition, properties, energy, and behavior of matter. It is said that chemistry has been around since prehistoric times. This was in the form of everyday objects like pottery, cosmetics and perfumes, and extracting metals from ores. Chemistry is based on the discovery and study of elements. Some elements were known to ancient man, but most were discovered by chemists and alchemists. Some say that chemistry started in the early Stone Age when man made fire. Chemistry is the study of chemical composition and properties of matter and the reactions of that matter. The study of any living thing involves chemistry.
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...
Because other metals were thought to be less perfect than gold, it was reasonable to believe that nature created gold out of other metals found deep within the earth and that a skilled artisan could duplicate this process. It was said that once someone was able to change, or transmute a "base" chemical into the perfect metal, gold, they would have achieved eternal life and salvation. In this way, alchemy turned into not only a scientific quest, but a spiritual quest as well. Although the purposes and techniques were often times ritualistic and fanciful, alchemy was in many ways the predecessor of modern science, especially the science of chemistry.The birthplace of alchemy was ancient Egypt, where, in Alexandria, it began to flourish during the Hellenistic period. Also at that time, a school of alchemy was developing in China.
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.
Chemistry is the most fascinating science to me. Chemistry applies to all things in the universe; living or non-living. Everything is made of elements which are made up of atoms of a certain atomic number. Thereafter I took AP Chemistry, I knew I had to choose a career in the field of chemistry. I understand and enjoy learning about chemistry. Chemistry is important, interesting, and ever expanding. Therefore, I must pursue a career in Chemistry.
Throughout my school career I have always loved chemistry. In Chemistry there was always a sense that there was more, there was always something new and exciting to be discovered and theories to be proven (or even disproven). Chemistry was the main subject with a real practical aspect to it during school and it is this, along with my genuine fascination with the subject, which fuels my desire to study it further.
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.
What exactly is a chemical engineer? Many would say that it is simply a "chemist who builds things" or an "engineer who makes chemicals. However, neither of these statements is completely true. The term "chemical engineer" is not meant to actually describe what it is a chemical engineer does, but to describe what sets it apart from the other branches of engineering: civil, mechanical, and electrical. On average, chemical engineers are numerically the smallest but also the highest paid. It is not a profession the must dwell on the past for comfort and support, for its greatest accomplishments are still yet to come.