Seeking Order in Chaos

Abstract

The International Year of the Periodic Table, proclaimed by the United Nations to begin January 2019, coincides with the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of Mendeleev’s published Periodic Table. The Periodic Table marked the coming of age of Chemistry. Mendeleev’s genius lay not in the discovery of the fact of periodicity, but in his interpretation of it as a fundamental principle, allowing for concrete hypotheses to be tested. His predictions of the properties of elements-tobe, as well as presentation in a simple and easy to understand chart were contributing factors to make it his lasting legacy. The success of the Periodic Table was a triumph of the value of understanding chemistry based on theory over merely depending on empirical observations and an ability to relate such theory to experiments. Mendeleev’s discovery emerged out of the difficulties he encountered in teaching chemistry and, interestingly enough, it continues to serve that purpose today. The Periodic Table is taught worldwide early on in science education. Regardless of scientific technicalities, the Periodic Table will always stand as a symbol of the beauty in the simplicity of nature, an order that permeates a seemingly chaotic world of elements with deep scientific and philosophical underpinnings. In this article, we trace the origins of this epoch-making discovery, his life as well as the times in which Mendeleev lived and worked and the present and future impact of his discovery.