Glass shards reveal what was inside a Renaissance alchemist’s ruined laboratory

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Experimentation is the foundation of the scientific process. It is at the heart of what it means to be human and to question the world around us.

Thousands of years ago, our ancestors made the first maps of the stars and practiced alchemy, the precursor to chemistry.

Even Sir Isaac Newton, considered the father of physics, was an avid alchemist who wrote a recipe for a key ingredient needed to create the legendary philosopher's stone. ...