Reference: Boorse 1966: The World of Atom
PART I – THE FOUNDATIONS OF ATOMIC THEORY
Chapter 1: Atomism in Antiquity (Lucretius ca. 99 – 55 B.C.)
Ancients surmised that all matter reduces to atoms that are very small, solid, permanent and indivisible. The atoms move of themselves and are ceaselessly in motion in infinite space.
Chapter 2: Vortices and Particles (Rene Descartes 1596 – 1650)
The world is essentially a group of vortices whose centers appear as the heavenly bodies. Thus, there is continuum of substance, and neither void nor action at a distance exist. Extension cannot be there without substance being there.
Chapter 3: Particles in the Atmosphere (Robert Boyle 1627 – 1691)
Boyle hypothesized that air is composed of several kinds of particles that have different functions. That elasticity (compressibility) of the air arises from static elastic atoms on contact, or alternatively from atoms being caught up in a whirling motion.
Chapter 4: Matter & Motion (Robert Hooke 1635 – 1703)
Unlike Newton, Hooke considered the particles of all bodies to be in incessant motion, those of different mass having different speeds. A heavy particle has a low vibration frequency, and a light one a high frequency.
Chapter 5: A Wave Theory of Light (Christian Huygens 1629 – 1695)
Huygens accepted Descartes vortices as the scheme of the world and rejected Newton’s universal gravitation, as he was not convinced of the distant-action theory. He supported Descartes’ idea of aether and proposed the wave theory of light. He introduced the idea of partial waves and wavefronts to explain the properties of light.
Chapter 6: Newton on Particles and Kinetics (Isaac Newton 1642 – 1727)
Newton’s mechanics deals with matter that has mass. Newton argued that the geometric nature of reflection and refraction of light could only be explained if light were made of corpuscles because waves do not tend to travel in straight lines.
Chapter 7: A Kinetic Theory of Gases (Daniel Bernoulli 1700 – 1782)
Daniel Bernoulli introduced the kinetic theory of gases. He postulated that gas particles have intrinsic motion that cannot be suppressed. Heat increases the speed of particles. Thus, heat is converted into mechanical energy.
Chapter 8: The Atom as a Center of Force (Roger Joseph Boscovich 1711 – 1787)
Boscovich pointed out that atoms as hard, rigid and massive spheres require instantaneous change of velocity upon collision. But instantaneous change of velocity presents a discontinuity. Therefore, atoms cannot be hard, rigid and massive spheres. They are point particles with the space between them filled with force. Thus, compression and expansion can occur.
Chapter 9: Atomic Chemistry Before Dalton (Bryan Higgins 1737-1820, William Higgins 1769 – 1825)
It seems that the ancient elements may be expressed as, earth = solids, air = gases, water = liquids, and fire = energy. According to Higgins, fire (energy) is opposed to attraction (force) as it turns solids into liquids, and liquids into gases. In his theory all different atoms were assumed to have the same weight. The concept of ratios in which atoms combine is not very clear.
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MAIN POINTS
- All matter reduces to atoms that are very small, solid, permanent and indivisible.
- The atoms are ceaselessly in motion by themselves in infinite space.
- There is a continuum of substance that forms all space as its extent.
- The world exists as vortices of substance with planets at their center.
- Air is composed of elastic particles allowing compressibility.
- The particles of all bodies are in incessant motion.
- Particles of different mass have different speeds.
- Light propagates as a wave. (Huygens)
- Light is corpuscular in nature. (Newton)
- Gas particles have intrinsic motion that cannot be suppressed.
- Heat increases the speed of particles.
- Atoms cannot be hard, rigid and massive spheres.
- Atoms are point particles with the space between them filled with force.
THEORY
The atom is a vortex in a sea of energy substance. The atomic substance is gradually condensing, until it becomes a spinning mass at the center. The atoms are ceaselessly in motion relative to one another.
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