Chemistry

Name:
Chemistry
Detailed information:
A basic science whose central concerns are (1) the structure and behavior of atoms (elements); (2) the composition and properties of compounds; (3) the reactions between substances, with their accompanying energy exchange; and (4) the laws that unite these phenomena into a comprehensive system. Chemistry is not an isolated discipline; it merges into physics and biology. The origin of the term is obscure. Chemistry evolved from the medieval practice of alchemy. Its bases were laid by such men as Boyle, Lavoisier, Priestly, Berzelius, Avogadro, Dalton, and Pasteur.See Inorganic Chemistry; Organic Chemistry; Physical Chemistry; and Appendix II A–E.Note: Chemistry has been variously defined, to the point where definition has become a semantic exercise of questionable, if not negative, value. “Chemistry is the science of matter” and “Chemistry is a branch of physics” are two instances of such definitions. The first relegates physics to the background while the second accords it supremacy.