alchemy -
a pseudoscientific forerunner of chemistry in medieval times
pseudoscience an activity resembling science but based on fallacious assumptions
alchemy -
the way two individuals relate to each other; "their chemistry was wrong from the beginning -- they hated each other"; "a mysterious alchemy brought them together"
Alchemy, derived from the Arabic word al-kimia, is both a philosophy and an ancient practice focused on the attempt to change base metals into gold, investigating the preparation of the "elixir of longevity", and achieving ultimate wisdom, involving the improvement of the alchemist as well as the making of several substances described as possessing unusual properties. The practical aspect of alchemy can be viewed as a protoscience, having generated the basics of modern inorganic chemistry, namely concerning procedures, equipment and the identification and use of many current substances. Alchemy has been practiced in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, Persia, China, Japan, Korea, the classical Greco-Roman world, the medieval Islamic world, and then medieval Europe up to the 20th century and 21st Century, in a complex network of schools and philosophical systems spanning at least 2,500 years.
OmegaWiki Dictionary
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alchemy An early proto-scientific practice combining elements of chemistry, physics, astrology, art, semiotics, metallurgy, medicine, mysticism, and religion.
