On Mon, Feb 03, 2003 at 10:45:29PM -0600, Alex Malinovich wrote: > On Mon, 2003-02-03 at 21:46, Pigeon wrote: > > > Alchemy is an interesting example... Of course, alchemy itself is > > possible, because people used to do it. They were called alchemists. > > The fact that they never achieved their fabled goals is because the > > discipline they were following was mostly a pile of mystical bollocks > > with very little scientific method. Now, we know that it is possible > > to turn lead into gold, but it is not currently practical to do it on > > more than the minutest scale. To extend one's lifespan is not > > Actually, an interesting point of note is the fact that alchemists > sought to transmute LEAD into gold, and not something like helium into > gold. So obviously, intentionally or not, they had some basic knowledge > of atomic mass. (Probably a rudimentary one based on the observations of > physical mass, but an understanding none the less.) That, in turn, > rather dismisses the point of this being "mystical rhetoric" and, > instead, brings it into the realm of scientific pursuits. An amusing point is that we now *do* have the ability to turn lead into gold, but it's so expensive that we just dig it out of the ground. -rob
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