Conventional wisdom tells us that chemistry was ''invented'' in the eighteenth century. In truth, it emerged gradually over the course of thousands of years, as scientific knowledge was discovered, collected, lost, rediscovered and refined. The first chemists were Sri Lankan steel forgers in the first century BCE; alchemists in third-century Egypt; herbalists in seventh-century China. Whether attempting to transform base metals into gold, cure disease or achieve immortality, these earliest figures blurred science and mysticism in search of answers. Science writer Kit Chapman criss-crosses the globe to uncover chemistry''s debts to these earliest innovators, revealing the illuminating story of how they broke new ground and shaped the scientific method.

Autorentext
Kit Chapman is an award-winning journalist and adventurer. With more than a decade of experience writing for titles such as Nature, New Scientist, Chemistry World and the Daily Telegraph, his work has taken him to more than 75 countries as he seeks amazing tales from the cutting edge of science. Kit has a PhD in the history of science from the University of Sunderland, is a lecturer at Falmouth University and a contributor to Formula One's F1 Global Exhibition.

Klappentext

The first chemists were Sri Lankan steel forgers in the first century BCE, alchemists who emerged in Roman Egypt; herbalists in Tang Dynasty China and engineers in eighth-century South America.

The Enlightenment is usually credited with the origins of chemistry. But in truth, the science blossomed gradually as early innovators distilled, smelted, forged and fermented their way through the millennia, blurring science and mysticism in search of answers to life's greatest mysteries.

Join Kit Chapman on a global quest to achieve immortality, cure all disease and transmute lead into gold as he reveals the illuminating stories of how the alchemists first broke new ground and shaped the scientific method.