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Antoine Lavoisier: Water
built 178 days ago
In his mapping efforts, Lavoisier recognized two distinct kinds of sediment layers. One kind often contained thin, delicate, well-preserved shells that must have been deposited gently. The other contained no well-preserved shells, but lots of rounded pebbles. Lavoisier deduced that the pebbles had been smoothed by agitated water. He named the first kind of sediment pelagic beds, and the second kind of sediment littoral beds. Further, he hypothesized that the two kinds of beds resulted from alternately rising and falling sea level, and that the roughened-up littoral beds were nearer coastlines.
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For 3 years following his entry into the Tax Farm, Lavoisier's scientific activity diminished somewhat, for much of his time was taken up with official Tax Farm business. He did... present one important memoir to the Academy of Sciences during this period, on the supposed conversion of water into earth by evaporation. By a very precise quantitative experiment Lavoisier showed that the "earthy" sediment produced after long-continued reflux heating of water in a glass vessel was not due to a conversion of the water into earth but rather to the gradual disintegration of the inside of the glass vessel produced by the boiling water.
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As well as devoting considerable time and energy to his career as a scientist, Lavoisier played a very active role as a civil servant and taxation official. This latter role enabled him to make a substantial fortune, and he spent much of this wealth on his scientific activities. He was asked to advise the Court of Louis XVI on tax issues and economic policy more generally, and he identified with the anti-protectionist party of the day in advocating the elimination of barriers to trade both within France itself and at the borders. He was ... asked to advise on the sewerage and water supply problems of Paris.
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