John Dalton was the first scientist to explain the behavior of atoms in terms of the measurement of weight. He created the first chart of atomic weights in about 1803. With this fascination came his proposal that every form of matter (solid, liquid or gas) was also made up of small particles. In 1808 he published A New System of Chemical Philosophy, it discussed the ability to determine different elements by their atomic weights. He explained that the small particles found in a compound were compound atoms and that there was a difference between atoms and compound atoms. He also uncovered that atoms couldn't be created or destroyed. By creating a way to discover the atoms weight, the research done by Dalton "changed the face of chemistry but initiated the progression into a modern science."
fun facts
- Dalton found the explantion of red-green color blindness, him and his brother were both born color blind.
- His family was very poor and couldn't afford to give him a high education
- He began teaching at 12 years old