Europe early history

Tylecote, R. R (1987), The Early History of Metallurgy in Europe, Longman, London. 

The early history of enzymes is associated widi die process of brewing and die production of wine because of die economic importance of these processes in Europe in the nineteenth century. Following on from the work of Pasteur, it was Buchner and others who showed that an extract of yeast carried out fermentation (i.e. die conversion of glucose to alcohol) as well as die yeast cell itself. The agents diat did diis catalysis in the extract were simply described as in yeast which, from the Greek enQn) and zyme, is the name enzyme was derived. 

Hawkes, J. G., Francisco-Ortega, J. (1993). The early history of the potato in Europe. Euphytica, 70,1-7. 

It has been known for centuries that the material called curare has the effect of causing muscular paralysis. This material had been brought to Europe from South America in small quantities by explorers, and was known to have been prepared by the natives in the form of aqueous extracts and concentrates for use as arrow poisons. The early history of the South American Indian arrow poisons has been described in detail by McIntyre (1). The samples available for scientific examination have varied so widely in botanical origin, physiological potency, and chemical constitution that it is only in recent years that definite information has been obtained about the chemical compounds responsible for the curare activity of the South American curare. 

Creating Networks in Chemistry The Founding and Early History of Chemical Societies in Europe Edited by Anita Kildebaek Nielsen and Sofia Strbaftova The Royal Society of Chemistry 2008... 

The Founding and Early History of Chemical Societies in Europe... 

To summarize the archaeological applications of lead isotope analysis, we note that despite the problems of ore body identification and metal recycling, it is becoming possible to build up the geographical details in the early history of metal making [28] for China [29] and for Bronze Age Europe, as well as later applications such as the mining of lead by the Romans in Germany [30]. 

The Spanish Civil War and World War II finally ruined the Spanish pyrites industry. Shipments had been blocked during these years, and alternatives had been found. After World War II, many new sulfuric acid plants were constructed in Europe to replace those that had been destroyed, and U.S. expansion was bolstered by economic growth, especially by demand for phosphate fertilizers. These new plants all used elemental sulfur (Contact process). While Spanish pyrites production returned to pre-war levels by 1950 (see Figure 2.5 for the early history of production), their market share had seriously eroded as sulfur demand, overall, had more than doubled. Pyrites mining as a source of sulfur continued in Spain until 2002. 

The first professorship in chemical engineerings in Britain (believed to be the first in Europe) was established at UCL in 1923. It was founded in memory of Sir William Ramsay and a thriving department has been active there ever since. The paper describes the early history of the department research activities, course syllabus and the severe disruption caused by the war of 1939-45. 

See H. Kragh, From curiosity to industry The early history of cryolite soda manufacture . Annals of Science, 52 (1995), 285-301 and L.F. Haber, The Chemical Industry during the Nineteenth Century A Study of the Economic Aspect of Applied Chemistry in Europe and North America (Oxford, 1969), pp. 54, 92, 148. 

Sofia Strbanova is Associate Professor, Centre for the History of Sciences and Humanities, Institute of Contemporary History of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic in Prague. Her research interests include history of chemistry and biochemistry and national styles in science. She is co-author or co-editor of several books, among others (with J. Janko) Science in Purkinje s Time (1988) (with I. Stamhuis and K. Mojsejova) Women Scholars and Institutions (2004) (with A. Kildebaek Nielsen) Creating Networks in Chemistry The Founding and Early History of Chemical Societies in Europe (2008) and (with A. Kostlan) One Hundred Czech Scholars in Exile (2011). 

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