# data[].attributes.body
At the heart of Alchemy was the quest to create the Philosopher's Stone, a material that alchemists believed could turn normal metals into gold. Unfortunately, this does not exist.

Actually, Alchemy formed the foundation of modern chemistry, and medicine and it led to the discovery of many things.

# data[].attributes.body
They spent a lot of time studying the properties of many chemicals and how they interacted.

Alchemists worked mostly off Aristotle's understanding of the elements, which proposed that all matter was divided into four elements: water, earth, fire, and air.

Through experimentation, alchemists discovered some official chemical elements we know today, like Phosphorous. This element was discovered by Hennig Brand in 1669.

Alchemists were often experimenting with various chemicals, trying to create new compounds.

# data[].attributes.body
Alchemy is also responsible for the discovery of three important chemicals, the mineral acids: nitric, acid, sulfuric, and hydrochloric acid. All of these are frequent participants in common chemical reactions and can be found everywhere, from school labs to leading research institutions.
These acids interested alchemists because of their unique properties, as when they mix with other substances, these mineral acids help transform one compound into another.

As well, when concentrated and combined with each other, the mineral acids could create corrosive compounds such as aqua regia which can dissolve metal.

# data[].attributes.body
Alchemists called this "aqua fortis" or "strong water" because of its corrosive properties.

It is not clear who discovered it first, but what is really known is that its history begins in the works of Persian Alchemists in the 800s, and later in the works of the German Saint Albert the Great in the 13th century.

The Nitric Acid was prepared by heating "saltpeter" (potassium nitrate) with alum and copper sulfate pentahydrate. When these compounds are heated together, their chemical bonds break apart, and new bonds are formed. As a result of this, you get nitrogen dioxide and water, which are then combined to form nitric acid.

Nitric Acid plays a fundamental role nowadays because we use it for the production of fertilizers, plastics dyes, and explosives.

# data[].attributes.body
The discovery of Sulfuric Acid is frequently credited to either Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi in the late 800s, or to Jabir ibn Hayyan in the 1200s.
Muhammad al-Razi roasted iron sulfate with copper sulfate pentahydrate, when these compounds are heated together, water and sulfur trioxide evaporate from the mixture, reacting in the air to form sulfuric acid.
Sulfuric acid is a key ingredient in the production of Phosphoric acid, it has roles in papermaking, petroleum refining, and water purification.

# data[].attributes.body
He believed that the basis of Alchemy could be applied to the organs of the body.
One of his most controversial ideas was that our "inner alchemist" worked to separate poison from non-poison, and that is completely wrong. But in exploring the idea, Paracelsus came to a conclusion that still applies today, "whether something is poisonous is a question of dosage". An example of this is medicine because some drugs might be too poisonous to be used as medicines, but at low doses, poisonous drugs can have important medical benefits.

He was responsible for bringing chemistry into medical treatments by using synthetic chemical compounds to create new drugs.

# data[].attributes.body
Alchemists were looked at with suspicion, mainly by the church, who worried that they were heretics. So to avoid trouble, many kept their findings secret, and when they made their notes, they wrote them in codes so that no one else would understand.

# data[].attributes.headline
The secrecy meant that new compounds weren't given standardized names and were possibly discovered multiple times by different alchemists. 

# data[].attributes.subject
The secrecy meant that new compounds weren't given standardized names and were possibly discovered multiple times by different alchemists. 

# data[].attributes.body
Alchemy eventually faded away and the chemistry we know today emerged.

# data[].attributes.body
SciShow. (2021, January 6). How Alchemy Led to Modern-Day Chemistry & Medicine [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maQ_Gd7TapI