Question

According to greek history, a greek scientist went running through the streets announcing that he had transformed lead into gold. Both lead and gold are elements. On the basis of what you know about the nature of elements, explain why his rejoicing was short-lived.

Answer 1

The Greek scientist rejoicing was short-lived because from what I know regarding an element’s nature, an element is defined as a unique substance, in which it cannot be broken down into the same substances using other ordinary chemical substances. Therefore, it would be quite impossible to turn lead into gold.