Terminology
Many scientific terms used in this book are different from today’s standard terminology. The following is not meant as a comprehensive list.
| oxy-muriatic acid | chlorine proposed as an element in 1815: see Conversation XIX |
| “columbium or tantalium” | niobium and tantalum the two elements always occur together, and were not recognized as separate until much later in the 19th century |
| phosphat of lime | calcium diphosphate or calcium the element calcium was isolated in 1808, but is named only once in this 1817 edition |
| glucium | beryllium Humphry Davy’s name for the element |
| muriatic acid | hydrochloric acid but still called “muriatic acid” for some commercial uses |
| muriat of lime | calcium chloride |
| oxymuriate of potash | potassium chlorate |
| muriat of soda | sodium chloride (table salt) |
| carbonic acid | carbon dioxide |
Note also:
| simple body, fundamental principle | element |
| fecula | starch (usually spelled “fæcula”) |
| spirit of wine | alcohol |
| philosopher | scientist |
| arts | industry, manufacture, crafts etc. (seldom “fine arts”) |
Some essential concepts relating to living things—photosynthesis, microorganisms, the cell, proteins—are either unknown or not mentioned. The atom theory had been proposed, but not by Humphry Davy; it is not mentioned in this book.
The word “explode” is used at least once in its orginal, figurative sense (“a word that should be exploded in chemistry”) but far more often in its later, concrete one. The word “explosion” is always used concretely (“an explosion, or a detonation as chemists commonly call it”).
Calculated Values:
“the point of zero, or the absolute privation of heat, must consequently be 1260 degrees below 32 degrees”
-1228° F. The calculation is based on wrong premises; the correct figure is about -460° F or -273° C.