Abstract
A major obstacle to chemistry being a deductive science is that its core concepts very often are defined in a circular manner: it is impossible to explain what an acid is without reference to the complementary concept of a base. There are many such dual pairs among the core concepts of chemistry. Such circulation of concepts, rather than an infirmity chemistry is beset with, is seen as a source of vitality and dynamism.
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Laszlo, P. Circulation of Concepts. Foundations of Chemistry 1, 225–238 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009964503013
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009964503013