First-Year Seminar: From Alchemy to Nanoscience

Catalog description

The imperative to transform matter, find its roots in alchemy and the search for the Philosopher's Stone, which was thought to contain the secret of turning base metals into gold and also the secret of immortality. We will examine the evolution of the way in which people have thought about matter and its transformations; from the manufacturing of explosives to dyestuffs to pharmaceuticals and perfumes. We will do some simple experiments that demonstrate some of these principles. We will follow the development of the chemical sciences from the works of early alchemists to Renaissance (Newton and Boyle) scientists and modern thinkers (Priestly, Lavoisier, Dalton, Mendeleev and others). This class, which is designed for non-science as well as potential science majors, will involve discussions on readings, as well as field trips to some Philadelphia locations that are notable in the history of chemistry.