From Caveman to Chemist: Circumstances and Achievements / Edition 1

by Hugh W. Salzberg

Overview

Tracing the oddities of the history of chemistry. Salzberg examines cultural and political influences on the ideas of chemists. He follows the evolution of chemistry from the Stone Age beginnings of ceramics and metallurgy, through the rise and decline of alchemy, to the culmination of classical chemistry in the late nineteenth century. Chapters one through nine lead from prehistoric technology, through ancient and medieval science to the study of chemicals and reactions that resulted in the sixteenth century birth of scientific chemistry. Chapters ten through fifteen focus on key chemists such as Sala, Boyle, Black, Lavoisier, Dalton, Berzelius, Laurent, and Arrhenius as they developed the ideas that led to classical chemistry and the concepts of molecules, chemical reactions, homology, valence, and molecular formulas and structures, among others. Twenty illustrations enhance the text. Also included are six timelines and two maps to help readers understand the influences of early history on chemistry.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780841217874
Publisher:	American Chemical Society
Publication date:	02/28/1998
Series:	American Chemical Society Publication Series
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	294
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.70(h) x 1.00(d)

Table of Contents

Introduction
Ancient Technology: The Roots of Chemistry
Hellenic Chemical Science
The Hellenistic and Roman Eras: The Rise of Alchemy
Islamic Alchemy
Medieval and Renaissance European Artisans
Medieval and Renaissance Alchemists and Natural Philosophers
Medieval and Renaissance Medicine and Medical Alchemy
The Information Explosion
Changing the Frame of Reference: The Attack on the Scientific Establishment
The First Chemists: Sala, Van Helmont, Boyle
Phlogiston—The Last of the Old Theories
Lavoisier and the Chemical Revolution
Atomic Weights and Molecular Formulas
Atomic Arrangements: Organic Chemistry
The Divisible Atom

Editorial Reviews

A history of chemistry assuming no special knowledge of that science. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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