There was something ghost-like and insubstantial about gases to these early chemists. They called liquids that turned into gases easily, "spirits." Methyl alcohol, they called "wood spirit"; ethyl alcohol, "wine spirit." Even today, alcoholic beverages are frequently referred to as "spirits." (Modern Arabs, from whose language the word "alcohol" was taken, call ethyl alcohol "spirit" from the English. This is a queer exchange.)

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About Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov was a 20th-century American writer and biochemist. Isaac Asimov was an American writer and professor of biochemistry at Boston University. During his lifetime, Asimov was considered one of the "Big Three" science fiction writers, along with Robert A. Read more on Wikipedia →

Themes

  • Humor — Witty observations and humorous takes on everyday life
  • Science — Discovery, inquiry, and the wonders of the natural world

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