Metachemistry
Description
Ruthenberg highlights the unique aspects of chemistry, specifically its metachemical fundamentals, which have been largely overlooked in current philosophies of science. Conventional metaphysics, derived from or focused on theoretical physics, is inadequate when applied to chemistry. The author examines and integrates historical and philosophical perspectives on important aspects of chemistry, including affinity, compositionism, emergence, synthesis/analysis, atomism/non-atomism, chemical species, chemical bond, chemical concepts, plurality, temporality/potentiality, reactivity, and underdetermination. To accomplish this, he draws on the works of notable chemists such as Frantisek Wald, Wilhelm Ostwald, Friedrich Paneth, and Hans Primas, who have contributed to the philosophical understanding of chemistry. The central conclusion of this study aligns with Immanuel Kant's viewpoint: Chemistry is a systematic art.
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Person
Klaus Ruthenberg , Coburg University of Applied Sciences, Germany.
Content
- Intro
- Preface to the German Edition
- Preface to the English Edition
- Contents
- Table of Abbreviations
- 1 Introduction - Self-Descriptions and External Assessments
- 2 The Berthelot Principle
- 3 Chemical Empiriocriticism - Frantisek Wald
- 4 Foundations of Chemistry - Ostwald's Principles
- 5 No Analysis without Synthesis
- 6 Potentiality and Temporality
- 7 Naturally Chemical?
- 8 How Chemical Is Quantum Chemistry?
- 9 Friedrich Paneth - a Philosophizing Chemist
- 10 Ontological Underdetermination
- 11 Synopsis - Fundamentals of Metachemistry
- 12 References
- List of Figures
- Name Index
- Subject Index
