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SUMMARY:Chymistry and colours: alchemy\, matter theory and optics in the e
 arly work of Isaac Newton - William Newman (Indiana University)
DTSTART:20070426T153000Z
DTEND:20070426T170000Z
UID:TALK7119@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Stephen John
DESCRIPTION:In the mid-1660s\, Isaac Newton came to the realization that w
 hite light is not a homogeneous substance\, but is made up of colorfacient
  rays of unequal refrangibility. While this discovery has no obvious antec
 edents in optical theory\, it is an undeniable fact that a similar move wa
 s made in the area of matter theory in the years immediately preceding New
 ton's discovery. Robert Boyle\, in part dependent on an earlier alchemical
  tradition\, argued extensively against the Aristotelian homogeneity of mi
 xed substances\, an idea that had achieved great prominence in medieval an
 d early modern universities. My paper will explore the possibility of link
 s between Newton's rejection of optical homogeneity and the chymical rejec
 tion of material homogeneity. The paper will assume no understanding of al
 chemical matter theory\, but will instead provide the background necessary
  for understanding how such a linkage may have taken place.
LOCATION:Seminar Room 2\, History and Philosophy of Science\, Department o
 f
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