Alchemy- An Important History

In the 1500 and 1600's, scientists dabbled in the often misunderstood art of alchemy.  The goal of alchemist's was to turn metals such as lead into gold.  Most notably, Robert Boyle and Isaac Newton devoted a lot of time to the question of the Philosopher's Stone.  Newton even thought he had unlocked the secret a a recently found manuscript from the pen of the Founder of Modern Physics.

Scientific American features an article on Newton's relationship to alchemy and the role that are played in the development of modern science. Alchemy was not based on some strange superstition, though maybe some faulty assumptions.   Interestingly, alchemists utilizing the modern scientific method in their quest were:

creating new alloys; manufacturing acids and pigments; inventing apparatus for distillation, the process used in making perfumes and whiskeys; conceiving of atoms centuries before modern atomic theory...

The idea that elements can transform isn't far from the truth and radioactive materials decay at a steady rate into lighter elements all the time.  Alchemists were not a strange, shadowy cult as they are often depicted.  They were modern chemists before modern chemistry had begun and an important story in the history of science.