Article ID: CBB001021651

Boyle and the Origins of Modern Chemistry: Newman Tried in the Fire (2010)

unapi

William Newman construes the Scientific Revolution as a change in matter theory, from a hylomorphic, Aristotelian to a corpuscular, mechanical one. He sees Robert Boyle as making a major contribution to that change by way of his corpuscular chemistry. In this article it is argued that it is seriously misleading to identify what was scientific about the Scientific Revolution in terms of a change in theories of the ultimate structure of matter. Boyle showed, especially in his pneumatics, how empirically accessible, intermediate causes, as opposed to ultimate, mechanical ones can be explored and identified by experiment. Newman is right to observe that Boyle constantly sought intimate links between chemistry and the mechanical philosophy. However, by doing so he did not thereby significantly aid the cause of attaining experimental knowledge of chemical phenomena and the support that Boyle's chemistry provided for the mechanical philosophy was weaker than both Boyle and Newman imply. Boyle was intent on articulating and defending a strict, mechanical account of the ultimate structure of matter to be sure, but his contributions to the new experimental science in general, and chemistry in particular, are best seen as distinct from that endeavour.

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Description Challenges William Newman's view of the Scientific Revolution as linked to a change in matter theory.


Associated with

Article Newman, William R. (2010) How Not to Integrate the History and Philosophy of Science: A Reply to Chalmers. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science (p. 203). unapi

Citation URI
https://data.isiscb.org/isis/citation/CBB001021651/

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Authors & Contributors
Newman, William Royall
Boantza, Victor D.
Banchetti-Robino, Marina Paola
Inglehart, Ashley J.
Chalmers, Alan Francis
Tomory, Leslie
Concepts
Chemistry
Mechanism; mechanical philosophy
Matter theory
Pneumatic chemistry
Alchemy
Atomism
Time Periods
17th century
18th century
Early modern
16th century
19th century
Places
Great Britain
England
Italy
Bath (England)
Scotland
Sweden
Institutions
Royal Society of London
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
Accademia del Cimento, Florence
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