The Italian scientist Stanislao Cannizzaro, b. July 13, 1826, d. May 10, 1910, laid the foundations of modern chemistry with his analysis of experimental atomic weight determinations. He showed that the application of Avogadro's law (1811) could yield a comprehensible system of atomic weights. At the first international congress of chemists at Karlsruhe in 1860, Cannizzaro presented his ideas with little effect. Fortunately, a paper of his was distributed to those in attendance, and Lothar Meyer included its ideas in his influential text of 1864, which developed theoretical chemistry on the basis of Cannizzaro's propositions.
Virginia F. McConnell
Last modified on: Monday, October 20, 1997.