![]() However, the similarity with modern concepts of science can be confusing when trying to understand where the hypothesis came from. The theory of the atomists seems to be more nearly aligned with that of modern science than any other theory of antiquity. In contrast, modern, quantum-mechanical atoms interact via electric and magnetic force fields and are far from inert. The Democritean atom is an inert solid (merely excluding other bodies from its volume) that interacts with other atoms mechanically. Iron atoms are solid with hooks that lock them into a solid water atoms are smooth and slippery salt atoms, because of their taste, are sharp and pointed and air atoms are light and whirling, pervading all other materials.ĭemocritus used the analogies of humans’ sense experiences to give a picture or an image of an atom that differentiated them from each other by their shape, their size, and the arrangement of their parts.Ĭonnections were defined by material links in which single atoms were supplied with attachments: some with hooks and eyes, others with balls and sockets. ![]() They claimed that the solidness of the material depends on the shape of the atoms involved. Shape and Connectivity of AtomsĪlong with Leucippus and Epicurus, Democritus suggested the earliest views on the shapes and connectivity of atoms. Atoms are indestructible, there lies a space between them, they are infinite in numbers, they have always been and always will be in motion, and they vary in shape and size. They are physically, but not geometrically, indivisible. The Democritus Atomic Theory said that everything in this world is composed of “Atoms”. He was the teacher of Pythagoras.Ĭontributions of Democritus and Leucippus are difficult to disintegrate as they are often mentioned together. He was well known to his contemporary northern-born philosopher Aristotle. There are disagreements regarding the exact year of birth, but it is probably around 460 BC.ĭemocritus is said to have been disliked by Plato and he wished all of his books burned. Who Was Democritus?ĭemocritus was born in Abdera, Thrace. The size and shape of an atom determine the properties of matter. He believed that atoms were uniform, solid, hard, incompressible, and indestructible. Democritus named the building block of matter atoms which means “indivisible”.
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