Essays in Historical ChemistryMacmillan, 1902 - 582 pages |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
Academy action alcohol amygdalin Annalen appears atomic weights benzene Berthelot Berzelius bodies boiling point Boyle calx Cannizzaro carbonic acid Cavendish century Chemical Society chemists chlorine colloid combination common air composition compounds constitution contained Dalton Davy decomposed density determined diffusion discovery doctrine Dumas elements ether ethyl existence experimental experiments fact Faraday Fermier-général gaseous gases Graham heat honour hydrate hydrogen hydroxylamine hypothesis inflammable inflammable air influence investigation isomeric known Kopp Kopp's laboratory labours Lavoisier Lavoisier's lectures Liebig liquid matter memoir Mendeleeff mercury metal method Meyer mixture mode molecular molecules nature nitric acid nitrogen observations obtained organic chemistry oxide oxygen palladium paper Philosophical phlogiston physical platinum potassium Priestley Priestley's Professor quantity radicle recognised regarded relations remarkable Royal Society salts says Scheele scientific soluble solution specific gravity specific volume substances sulphate sulphur temperature theory tion tube vapour Victor Meyer Watt whilst Wöhler
Popular passages
Page 23 - ... a list of paper carefully divided into inches and parts, and we observed not without delight and satisfaction that the quicksilver in that longer part of the tube was 29 inches higher than the other.
Page 493 - Without entering into details, I will give the conclusions I then arrived at in the very words I used : — 1. The elements, if arranged according to their atomic weights, exhibit an evident periodicity of properties. 2. Elements which are similar as regards their chemical properties have atomic weights which are either of nearly the same value (eg, platinum, iridium, osmium) or which increase regularly (eg, potassium, rubidium, cesium).
Page 365 - So live, that when thy summons comes to join The innumerable caravan, which moves To that mysterious realm, where each shall take His chamber in the silent halls of death, Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night, Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave, Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.
Page 189 - My desire to escape from trade, which I thought vicious and selfish, and to enter into the service of Science, which I imagined made its pursuers amiable and liberal, induced me at last to take the bold and simple step of writing to Sir H. Davy...
Page 277 - It is conceivable that the various kinds of matter, now recognized as different elementary substances, may possess one and the same ultimate or atomic molecule existing in different conditions of movement. The essential unity of matter is an hypothesis in harmony with the equal action of gravity upon all bodies.
Page 292 - To form some conception of the degree of coarse-grainedness indicated by this conclusion, imagine a rain drop, or a globe of glass as large as a pea, to be magnified up to the size of the earth, each constituent molecule being magnified in the same proportion. The magnified structure would be coarser grained than a heap of small shot, but probably less coarse grained than a heap of cricketballs.
Page 58 - The feeling of it to my lungs was not sensibly different from that of common air, but I fancied that my breast felt peculiarly light and easy for some time afterwards. Who can tell but that in time this pure air may become a fashionable .article 1 Lee. cit. p. 94. in luxury ? Hitherto only two mice and myself have had the privilege of breathing it.
Page 245 - ... are hydrated to a higher degree than they are in neutral saline solutions. Hence the equilibrium of hydration is different on the two sides of the membrane of an osmometer. The outer surface of the membrane being in contact with pure water, tends to hydrate itself in a higher degree than the inner surface does, the latter surface being supposed to be in contact with a saline solution. When the full hydration of the outer surface extends through the thickness of the membrane, and reaches the inner...
Page 108 - By this means upwards of 135 grains of water were condensed in the cylinder, which had no taste nor smell, and which left no sensible sediment when evaporated to dryness ; neither did it yield any pungent smell during the evaporation ; in short, it seemed pure water.
Page 153 - In this situation, I saw reason to embrace what is generally called the heterodox side of almost every question.