Week 2 - 1.3 Alchemy Flashcards
What’s the value of gold?
One area of technology that was common to all the societies we have mentioned was metallurgy. Useful tools could
be made that would last a long time. Weapons could stay sharp longer with improved metals. Precious metals
such as gold and silver could be refined and used for jewelry or for money. Because it was fairly rare, gold was
considered to be very valuable and became a common means of paying for goods and services.
But mining for gold is a slow, dirty, and dangerous process. Not everyone owns a gold mine - in both the ancient
Egyptian society and during the Roman Empire, the gold mines were the property of the state, not an individual or
group. So there were few ways for most people to legally get any gold for themselves.
The _____ were a varied group of scholars and charlatans whose goal was two-fold: to create the Philosopher’s
Stone (which caused the transmutation of lead into gold) and the discovery of the Elixir of Life (bestowing immortality on the person who possessed it).
Alchemist
However, out of all this secrecy came several contributions to modern-day chemistry. Early acids and bases were
discovered. Glassware for running chemical reactions was developed.
Alchemist Contributions to Chemistry
The _____ were never successful in changing lead into gold. But modern nuclear physics can accomplish this
task. Lead is subjected to nuclear bombardment in a particle accelerator. A small amount of gold can be obtained
by this process. However, the cost of the procedure is far more than the amount of gold obtained. So the dream of
the alchemists has never (and will never) come true.
Alchemist
Gold has been considered valuably by all civilizations.
-read
The alchemists tried to find the philosopher’s stone that would allow then to make gold from lead.
-read
Many dishonest schemes were created, but nobody ever made gold from lead.
-read
The alchemists did contribute many advances to the new science of chemistry.
-read
The alchemists were a varied group of scholars and charlatans whose goal was two-fold: to create
the Philosopher’s Stone (which caused the transmutation of lead into gold) and the discovery of the Elixir of
Life (bestowing immortality on the person who possessed it). The origin of the term “alchemy” is uncertain.
There are roots to Greek, Arabic, and ancient Egyptian words. Three major streams of alchemy are known -
Chinese, Indian, and European, with all three streams having some factors in common
Alchemy
This caused the transmutation of lead into gold. One of the main goals of the alchemists
was to create this stone.
philosophers stone
One area of technology that was common to all the societies we have mentioned was_____. Useful tools could be made that would last a long time. Weapons could stay sharp longer with improved metals. Precious metals
such as gold and silver could be refined and used for jewelry or for money.
Metallurgy
Because it was fairly rare, gold was
considered to be very valuable and became a common means of paying for goods and services.
But mining for ___ is a slow, dirty, and dangerous process.
Gold
Not everyone owns a gold mine - in both the ancient
Egyptian society and during the Roman Empire, the gold mines were the property of the state, not an individual or
group. So there were few ways for most people to legally get any gold for themselves.
-gold
The origin of the term “______” is uncertain. There are roots to Greek,Arabic, and ancient Egyptian words. Three major streams of _____ are known - Chinese, Indian, and European,with all three streams having some factors in common. We will not focus on the philosophical or religious aspects of alchemy, but will look briefly at the techniques developed in the European stream that ultimately influenced the
development of the science of chemistry.
Alchemy
Many of the specific approaches that alchemists used when they tried changing lead into gold are vague and
unclear. Each alchemist had his own code for recording his data. The processes were kept secret so others could not profit from them. Different scholars developed their own set of symbols as they recorded the information they
came up with. Many alchemists were not very honest, taking money from a nobleman by claiming to be able to
make gold from lead, then leaving town in the middle of the night. Sometimes the nobleman would detect the fraud
and have the alchemist hung. By the 1300s, several European rulers had declared alchemy to be illegal and set out
strict punishments for those practicing the alchemical arts.
Alchemy
