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008 250312042017GB eng
020 _a9781138248519
037 _bTaylor & Francis
_cGBP 49.99
_fBB
040 _a01
041 _aeng
072 7 _aPDX
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100 1 _aPeter J. Ramberg
245 1 0 _aChemical Structure, Spatial Arrangement
_bThe Early History of Stereochemistry, 1874–1914
250 _a1
260 _aOxford
_bRoutledge
_c20170306
300 _a424 p
520 _bOffering a comprehensive narrative of the early history of stereochemistry, Dr Ramberg explores the reasons for and the consequences of the fundamental change in the meaning of chemical formulas with the emergence of stereochemistry during the last quarter of the nineteenth century. As yet relatively unexplored by historians, the development of stereochemistry - the study of the three-dimensional properties of molecules - provides a superb case study for exploring the meaning and purpose of chemical formulas, as it entailed a significant change in the meaning of chemical formulas from the purely chemical conception of 'structure' to the physico-chemical conception of molecules provided by the tetrahedral carbon atom. This study is the first to treat the emergence of the unique visual language of organic chemistry between 1830 and 1874 to place in context the near simultaneous proposal of the tetrahedral carbon atom by J.H. van 't Hoff and J.A. Le Bel in 1874. Dr Ramberg then examines the research programs in stereochemistry by Johannes Wislicenus, Arthur Hantzsch, Victor Meyer, Carl Bischoff, Emil Fischer and Alfred Werner, showing how the emergence of stereochemistry was a logical continuation of established research traditions in chemistry. In so doing, he also illustrates the novel and controversial characteristics of stereochemical ideas, especially the unprecedented use of mechanistic and dynamic principles in chemical explanation.
999 _c417
_d417