Historians of science are taking a new and lively interest in alchemy, the often mystical investigation into the hidden mysteries of nature that reached its heyday in Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries and has been an embarrassment to modern scientists ever since. Full Story »
Posted by Marius Chitosca
John Noble Wilford, who first won renown for his history of cartography The Mapmakers in 1981 (revised 2001), proves a knowledgeable cicerone to the contradictory legacy of alchemists, those forerunners of modern experimental scientists. With wide-ranging citations from scholars at a recent symposium in Philadelphia, he dispels the notion that these often-deluded folk were interested only in turning lead into gold: their interests were far wider, embracing metallurgy and medicine, and the philosophical underpinnings of their work more subtle than mere greed. The only thing missing from this historical overview is the fascination alchemy still held for a man with as modern a sensibility as that of playwright August ... More »
A long, but coherent and comfortable to read editorial revolving around a trans-disciplinary conference that took place these days at Philadelphia. The scientists (both nature and social ones) taking part at this conference rethought and pondered together the controversial role of alchemy in emerging modern chemistry and medicine. Noble describes in detail their conclusions: above self-delusion, alchemy's scientific hallmark was experimentalism (discovering by trial and error) and though it slowed down a bit the process of reaching a "scientific revolution" in the area of chemistry, it surely inspired it and offered it some practical grounds. As for the theory underlying alchemy, historians claimed that, since alchemists ... More »
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