Re: I'm just wondering... By: Brysing Moderator / Adept
Post # 2 Jan 28, 2016
Transformation, Creation, Combination. That's Alchemy.That's witchcraft. That's magic!
Magic is change. Change of attitude.Change of immediate environment. Changing one or more things into something entirely different. That's magic; and that's Alchemy!
I see from your profile you're very interested in alchemy. Alchemy basically evolved into modern day chemistry. Chemistry involves taking material substances and changing them into other substances through chemical reactions. For example, sodium and chlorine, the first being a highly reactive dangerous metal and the second being a poisonous gas, when reacted together form table salt or sodium chloride, which is obviously edible and essential to human life.
So what you started with in this case is something totally different to what you end up with. Which I guess is why it can be seen as magic!
Eh? My sister said they had her do it in Chemistry class in school. I thought we had talked about this some under my old account ('fanboy', sorry for misbehaving and getting gagged) and you had agreed that modern day chemistry is like a continuation of alchemy? Or am I remembering wrong? Anyway that was what I understood...if I have some incorrect information please correct and inform me...
Re: I'm just wondering... By: Brysing Moderator / Adept
Post # 7 Jan 30, 2016
Your sister actually combined a gas with a solid? How did she do that? You can put salt into solution, and separate the sodium from the chlorine. Not quite the same as making salt!
Hmm yeah dunno it was something she said to me growing up, that she had combined these 2 things that are really harmful and made salt and then they made her taste it...might have just been one of those 'older sister' stories.
I imagine one could use electrolysis perhaps as an alternative for separating the sodium and chlorine, and then react them together under verycareful conditions? Surely you agree it is theoretically possible to react sodium with chlorine to make salt?
Is your lesson to me that the only naturally occuring place for sodium and chlorine is in seawater? If that's the case I wasn't aware of that... I would have imagined there would be other naturally occuring compounds featuring sodium or chloride.
Yeah I dunno if electrolysis would work, been too long since chemistry in school...but yes it is possible to react a gas with a solid. That's how rust works, iron reacts with oxygen in the air.
Re: I'm just wondering... By: H2OfanRikki / Novice
Post # 10 Jan 30, 2016
I spent years in chemistry class making salt. Combinations of natural elements can come together to make a salt..it does not necessarily have to be edible, but it is still salt.