ROUND 9: History - Alchemy

 


1. The word alchemy originated in Greek, but from what language did
   it re-enter medieval Europe? 

A. Arabic 


2. One of the oldest alchemical symbols is that of Ouroborus, a
   snake adopting an unusual pose. What is the snake doing in this
   image? Incidentally, the same image was to be significant in a 
   19th century chemical discovery. 

A. swallowing its tail 


3. Although he was not the first to expound the notion that all
   matter is composed of four elements--air, earth, fire, and
   water--this Greek philosopher's doctrine on the subject became
   normative and indisputable for alchemists for over two thousand
   years. 

A. Aristotle 


4. Many alchemists believed that all metals were composed of the
   same two, or sometimes three, materials, also described more
   abstractly as "principles". Name any one of them. 

A. sulfur, mercury, salt 


5. A piece of equipment appearing frequently in the laboratories of
   alchemists was known as an alembic. This term is sometimes used
   to refer to the entire device, sometimes just a part. What kind
   of device is it? 

A. a still (accept 'retort') 


6. A 16th century Swiss alchemist and physician is credited with
   insisting that medical treatments be based on observation and 
   experiment rather than blind adherence to established
   authorities. His given name was Theophrastus von Hohenheim. 
   By what name is he better known? 

A. Paracelsus 


7. Some alchemists believed that when a substance was heated or
   burned, it gave off an 'inflammable principle' that was simply
   absorbed by air. Antoine Lavoisier, whose sorry demise you heard
   about in last week's game, disproved this theory. What was this
   so-called principle called? 

A. phlogiston (flo-JISS-ton) 


8. This 17th century scientist, who made profound contributions to
   mathematics and physics, also spent more than two decades of his
   life in the study of alchemy. After the economist J. M. Keynes
   (CAINS) acquired and examined his papers, he said that he "was
   not the first of the age of reason. He was the last of the
   magicians...". Name him. 

A. Sir Isaac Newton 


9. This alchemical brotherhood, whose first manifesto appeared in
   1614, but which claimed to have been founded a couple of
   centuries earlier by a German monk, still exists in various
   forms today, some of which prefer to concentrate on spiritual
   rather than physical transformations. 

A. The Rosicrucians 


10. This highly influential 20th century psychologist interpreted
    alchemical symbols as describing the development of the human 
    psyche as it passes through conflict, crisis, and
    transformation. Who is he? 

A. Carl Jung (YOOHNG)