Review: The analysis of inorganic bodies

The analysis of inorganic bodies by Jöns Jacob Berzelius

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

...to gratify the desire of many of Berzelius acquaintance, and because he was him­self convinced, that a treatise of this kind, short though it be, could not fail to be interesting, coming from a philosopher who has so much contributed to give perfection not only to analysis, but also to chemistry in general; for there are few branches of science that he has not elucidated by his researches, or extended by his labours. And though his countryman Scheel has rendered himself illustrious by showing what genius, combating against fate, could effect with small means, Berzelius has displayed in its full extent, the example of what genius can effect under favourable circumstances.
When none of this s are to be had, lit­tle glass re­torts, which may I self-blown with the least fusible glass, may I used: these lit­tle re­torts can be em­ployed when the ex­am­i­na­tion is made at a mod­er­ate heat, sucff as that from the spirit lamp.

The retort is now balanced, and the substance for analysis is then placed in it, either entire or in powder, according to circumstances, and is weighed. In this way the loss is avoided, which would necessarily take place if the powder were weighed first and then placed in the retort. The neck of the retort is next adapted to the receiver, and a tube of caoutchouc is used for this purpose, without jointure, such as is obtained by cutting the necks of common caoutchouc bottles...

Just remember, a glass in the lab have the name...Berzelius.



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Review: Elements of Agricultural Chemistry

Elements of Agricultural Chemistry by Thomas Anderson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



World Cat:
The major object of this work is to expose the main principles and fundamentals of agricultural chemistry which will be useful for an ordinary farmer. The book avoids unnecessary technicalities and it is kept as simple as possible for the general reader.
For me: perfect receipt book for organic food. Agri­cul­tural in­quiries are li­able to pe­cu­liar fal­lac­ies due to the per­turb­ing in­flu­ence of cli­mate, sea­son, and many other causes, the in­di­vid­ual ef­fects of which can only be elim­i­nated with dif­fi­culty, and much error has been in­tro­duced, by hastily generalizing from sin­gle ex­per­i­ments, in place of await­ing the re­sults of re­peated tri­als. Hence it is that the progress of sci­en­tific agri­cul­ture must nec­es­sar­ily be slow and grad­ual, and is not likely to be marked by any great or star­tling dis­cov­er­ies. Now that the re­la­tions of sci­ence to prac­tice are bet­ter un­der­stood, the ex­trav­a­gant ex­pec­ta­tions at one time en­ter­tained have been aban­doned, and, as a nec­es­sary con­se­quence, the in­ter­est in agri­cul­tural chem­istry has again in­creased, and the con­vic­tion daily gains ground that no one who wishes to farm with suc­cess, can af­ford to be with­out some knowl­edge of the sci­en­tific prin­ci­ples of his art.



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Review: Researches, Chemical and Philosophical, Chiefly Concerning Nitrous Oxide, or Dephlogisticated Nitrous Air, and Its Respiration.

Researches, Chemical and Philosophical, Chiefly Concerning Nitrous Oxide, or Dephlogisticated Nitrous Air, and Its Respiration. by Sir Humphry Davy

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



In 1798, Humphry Davy was appointed laboratory superintendent of the Pneumatic Institute in Bristol, UK. this was an establishment founded on the belief that the recently discovered gases might have curative applications. Here he set to work on his monumental text on the history, chemistry, physiology and recreational use of nitrous oxide - published in 1800 when he was just 21 years old. Curiously, given the purpose of the Pneumatic Institute, the use of this gas in therapy is barely mentioned: a couple of accounts of its use on paralyzed patients, and that's about the extent. It is at the end of this book that he makes his oft-repeated statement about the possible use of nitrous oxide in surgery: 'As nitrous oxide.appears capable of destroying physical pain, it may probably be used with advantage during surgical operations in which no great effusion of blood takes place.
Spotting medical potential



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