Ancients,

Alchemists &
Proto-Chemists
 Warm Up – Day 1
You are an atom prior to the 19th century, when atoms
were not yet discovered. Nobody recognizes you or
knows who you are. Compose a short paragraph that
you could write to students & scientists alike
explaining who you are, why you are so important,
and why it is so unfortunate that people don’t know
you! Use prior knowledge of atoms, be creative, be
funny, use witty sarcasm and/or make a song or rhyme
out of it.
 Atomic History Time Line

At Least 3 Greek Theories

450 BC – “The Atomists” Democritus & Leucippus

First posed idea that matter is made of indivisible
particles called atoms (A-tom = no cut, or unable to
be divided further).
Democritus of Abdera
Democritus asserted that space, or the
Void, had an equal right with reality,
or Being, to be considered existent.
He conceived of the Void as a
vacuum, an infinite space in which
moved an infinite number of atoms
that made up Being (i.e. the physical
world). These atoms are eternal and
invisible; absolutely small, so small
that their size cannot be diminished
(hence the name atomon, or
"indivisible"); absolutely full and
incompressible, as they are without
pores and entirely fill the space they
occupy; and homogeneous, differing
only in shape, arrangement, position,
and magnitude.
 Heraclitus claimed that the nature of everything is
change itself; likened to everything being made of
Heraclitus fire.

This led to the belief that change is real, and stability

illusory. For Heraclitus everything is "in flux", as
exemplified in his famous aphorism "Panta Rhei"
("Panta Rei"):

Heraclitus by Hendrick ter Brugghen

πάντα χωρεῖ καὶ οὐδὲν μένει (Plato, Cratylus 402a)
Everything flows and nothing is left (unchanged), or
Everything flows and nothing stands still, or
All things are in motion and nothing remains still.
 Along comes Aristotle!
All substances are
made of 4 elements!
Fire – Hot, Air – light,
Earth - cool, heavy,
Water – wet
Blend these in different
proportions to get all
substances.
http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/rembrandt/1650/arist
otle-homer.jpg
 Aristotle
• Aristotle's teachings against the idea of
Democritus's atom were so powerful that the idea
of the atom fell out of philosophical fashion for the
next 2,000 years!
• This time period would be dominated by
pseudoscience in the name of Alchemy and nothing
would happen for a long…
long…
long time…
However… while we are waiting…
…along come the Alchemists!
 10th Century
Al-Razi developed lab
equipment &
procedures, also
discovered Sulfuric
acid.

8th Century Medieval Europe – 1660’s

Jabir Ibn Haiyan, Hennig Brand searched for
introduced the “Philosophers Stone,” a
experimental substance that would change
investigation to base metals into gold.
alchemy. Discovered Phosphorous.
Then, finally…the science of Chemistry emerges.
 1700’s Joseph
Priestley Gas
collection using
displacement,
discovered oxygen.

1600’s – Otto von

Guericke 1780s Antoine Lavoisier
Air pressure studies, proposed the law of
something the conservation of matter:
Alchemists lacked. matter is neither created nor
destroyed.
 The Atom Video
• An Introduction to the World of Chemistry!!
 Warm Up!
Mr. O’Connell is forced to unfortunately delay
the start of his class by 30. seconds every time a
student asks him a question just after the tardy
bell has rung. If 5 students do this at the start of
every class throughout the week, how many
times could he watch the Lord of the Rings
Trilogy with the time wasted in his 9 years of
working here? (LOTR Running time
approximately 682 min. for extended editions)
Mystery Boxes Activity