Can alchemy really be done?

[darkkakashi14]

Im not sure if this sounds dumb to anyone but who thinks alchemy can be done? How many of you think that? :confused

[Kunoichi no Kiri]

In that you mean Alchemy as a equilivant to magic, of course not.

But go ahead and call it chemestry or science, and the answer is yes.

[Kuchiyose[NO]Jutsu]

well I was reading something from I think it was Animerica and they listed the ingredients including Milk, sulfur and more (I can't remember) and you'll be set for equivalent trade. :laugh :wink

[Rurouni]

Part of me says yes (as in the alchemy done in FMA) and part of me says no (in which I turn to chemistry and etc.). I'll believe anything from anime :smile-big

[eternalblade]

In the real world Alchemy was one of the earlier forms of chemistry, and while it was largely influenced by superstition and unnatainable dreams like element reconstruction (at least, it was a few thousand years too early, or more, as that involves some serious sub-atomic manipulation), it still made some good progress in the causes of science, including the invention of gunpowder.

As far as the alchemy excercised in full metal alchemist, the simple answer is that it is not possible. While it does carefully follow rules of matter (there is a constant amount of matter in the universe [assuming the universe is not expanding], and matter cannot be created or destroyed, only changed - thus 2 pounds of something can absolutely never become 3 pounds without adding matter), it does not follow the rules of energy. Energy has the same limits as matter, by energy I mean all motion, heat and and similar things "the power to do work." There is a limited, set amount of energy in the universe (barring nuclear fission effects), energy cannot be created or destroyed, same as matter, only changed. For example, we take energy from food and use it to apply kinetic energy (force) to our surroundings to move. The kinetic energy passes into the ground, doors, whatever we touch, and so on and so forth. I'm not talking magic or auras, just the physical force behind even the lightest touch. So how does this apply to alchemy in full metal alchemist? Alchemy (if it were possible in that style) would require immense energy. Often the alchemical processes that are used in that series shift items at a sub-atomic level, something that or best scientists have extremely limited ability to mimic. There is no source of energy accounted for in FMA, or any meantion of balance in energy.

In my personal oppinion, I think science might eventually be able to mimic some of the things done in FMA, like turning coal into gold. However, I think that it will always take place in a lab with expensive technical equipment, it will always take immense energy and a great deal of time. People will never control it with mere knowledge and no equipment, and a circle drawn on the ground will never make a difference one way or another.

[crabman]

I think the highest natural number of electrons is like eight, and scientists somehow got it all the way up to like 10 or 11. Technically that is alchemy since you are changing matter. So ya, i guess alchemy is kinda possible.

[HinataFanBoy]

well it used to be considered a science didnt it?

[eternalblade]

ouch, not exactly. There can be a lot more than eight electrons, they just run in limited numbers in rings. I believe the number increases as you get to further orbits, but is low closer to the nucleus. However, the artificial elements do indeed exist, and are created in a somewhat similar manner to FMA the series making them "alchemy" by FMA standards.

But don't be mislead, real alchemy is dead. There are no more advances in alchemy because we now use chemistry.

[darkkakashi14]

Interesting!

[mayhemrules]

ouch, not exactly. There can be a lot more than eight electrons, they just run in limited numbers in rings. I believe the number increases as you get to further orbits, but is low closer to the nucleus. However, the artificial elements do indeed exist, and are created in a somewhat similar manner to FMA the series making them "alchemy" by FMA standards.

But don't be mislead, real alchemy is dead. There are no more advances in alchemy because we now use chemistry.

yep 100 points to eternalblade
:smile-big

[Masaki]

Alchemy's main focus was to turn ordinary metals into gold. Sometime in the late 1900s, I believe, some college students used some energy, I forget which, and actually turned a small portion of the mercury they had into gold. It's possible, but the amount it took to get the materials was far higher than the worth of gold itself. Thus, no equivalent exhange.

[Takeru!]

The principle of Alchemy may eventually be possible, since essentially it's trying to change one form of material into another. The simplest idea is being able to create a controlled form of radiation, as well as a reverse form of it. But just cause it's possible to think about how to do it, its not something that can just be done.

[Hakuzo]

can alchemy be done? i'm not sure, but when i sit down and learn from the net i'll be the first to try. (but i'm so slow, so i might not get around to it :)::

[Tehol Beddict]

'BillyWitchDoctor.com have One convenient locations...in Africa'

'That crazy hat for chicken...'

'Arise chicken...chiken, arise'

'Yes....Ultra Mega Chicken...no, shhhh...he is legend'

[BillyWitchDoctor.com (Aqua Teen Hunger Force)]
---
So you you see, alchemy is possible. Through this very alchemy *cough* African voodoo *cough*, Ultra Mega Chicken was returned to life, where he immediately smashed Carl under his Ultra Mega...foot.

[Hagane no Renkinjutsushi]

No, just no. Trust me.. I tried.

[Hakuzo]

u sure u tried w/ all ur might? i think that sometimes u have to be gifted w/ the talent to preform Alchemy. would that be wrong?

[TenshiOni]

Of course ALchemy from FMA is real......if u have the Philosopher's Stone like me.... :shifty

[konohasno1]

Come on guys.

Alchemy can't be done, though I wish it was so. Alchemy is a cartoon, it can't be done.

[Muramasa007]

of course not its fiction...but the equivalent exchange thing is true.

[the original fusan]

my minds tellin no, but my body, my body tellin me yeah nah but it would be nice but i dont think so

[KUREIGU]

well in medievil england you could study it as a degree

[Arcanite]

I practice alchemy all the time. On my way to work, I make a stop at McDonalds and turn my $5 into a burger, fries, and soda. Oh ok, I wasn't practicing the alchemy, it was McDonald alchemists inside.

[Ridley]

I doubt that a person can perform alchemy just by capping hands :P ...

[triggerc]

I doubt that a person can perform alchemy just by capping hands :P ...
Of course not. even though in theory alchemy is just the conversion of base metal into gold (read all about it as wikipedia.com), the human body is not a medium in which the entropy of the universe can be converted into energy of sub-atomic transformation. :smile-big

[Oujisama]

The real alchemy is just a bunch of crazys doing experiments in their basement. Its sorta twisted actually.

[Gaia]

It would be cool if I could do alchemy(evil thinking)

[moonslash1718]

i think alchemy could happen if u knew how to do it

[Meijin]

The real alchemy is just a bunch of crazys doing experiments in their basement. Its sorta twisted actually.

Have to agree with you on this one.

[moonslash1718]

actually im going to have to disagree with Devilish_Angel and Zeh because even though in the manga they make all magical and stuff thats bs but u could do it if u really trird hard and it wouldn't be of equal value it would be way harder.

[faults]

Actually, making crystal meth (or some kind of drug) is a form of alchemy. I read it somewhere before at school, but I can't remember from what :/.

It would be so awesome to do alchemy though, I'd be making a lot of swords and shit and just transmuting random stuff.

[tweekt]

yea its real
not da kine from sho tho

[Gondar: King of Primates]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't alchemy basically primitive chemistry? In that case it is very possible, done all the time. I did "alchemy" in organic chem lab.

[ZeonNoMamono]

Why don't you find out and try to bring someone back from the dead...?

[itachidattebayo]

Alchemy is like a chemical reaction in which u spilt the object into atoms and reorganizes them into a material of similar structure or something like that....Im not sure........

[Sergas]

Sergas's guide to creating Gold:

Step 1:
First you'd need to get all the materials and equipment.

You'll need a high energy particle accelerator. The Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider at Brookhaven National Ladboratories would be perfect. And I'm sure if you ask nicely, they'll let you use it.

You should also get the Materials. I would suggest using Platinum and Hydrogen.

Step 2:
Collide the two elements in the particle accelerator. Hope to god that a Platinum atom and Hydrogen manage to collide at the perfect agnle such that a reaction takes place to fuse the elements. This would bring the grand total of protons to 79. Congratulations, you now have gold.

Step 3:
Pat yourself on the back for spending millions of dollars to make less than a penny's worth of gold.

[omnislasher_VII]

I say no.

I mean, how do you change the matter itself?

[gitwer]

That's it... remedial chesmistry for (almost) everyone.

And no television priveliges for 6 months :P

[RaitoRyuukashin]

Wow someone finally asked the question. The stupid one that is.

[Liengod]

It basically is, except in Full Metal Alchemist its like the fast forward, fireworks, runes, no vials or lab glasses needed version of the real life chemistry.

[CoolBuu]

stupid question.


of COURSE Alchemy is real! Of COURSE it can be done. Don't listen to these haters, Dark kakashi. Just go by a grimoire from Books-a-Million. While you're at it, grab the Necronomicon. With these two invaluable tomes (6.99 and 14.99, respectively) you'll be on your way! While you're at it, summon Baelzebub to water your garden!


:notrust no, alchemy can't be done.

[alchemicfanatic]

So far it seems that most people agree that alchemy, in the FMA sense, is not possible. I agree that you can not simply draw/project a circle on the ground, tatoo it on yourself, or whatever else and expect to rearange the atomic structure of matter. Although, as it has been before stated, a more scientific (rather than magical) form of alchemy is possible. Another good point presented was that 2 pounds of matter could not become 3. Now lets assume for a second that alchemy in the way of FMA was possible, well then you could simply take the air molecules and combine them with the matter you are trying to trunsmute. Although this method sounds simple enough you would run into the problem of creating an implosive force which could kill you.

The way matter is transmuted in the FMA world is to have a complete understanding of the way the matter is assembled. This means you would have to know the exact way the molecules are aranged in the materials you are using, and in the material you wish to create. Alchemy is done in three steps in the alchemic process.The first step is understanding in which a person understands the molecular composition of an object. The second step is decomposition in which all bonds in the substance are broken through the use of alchemic energy. Finally reconstruction occurs in which those atoms are reconstructed into something new. So as you can see, even if alchemy could be done (in the FMA sense) it would take lots and lots of study, and you would have to have a way to produce the alchemic energy (which I assume is some kind of spirital energy).

[Sabaku no Ira]

Well, I never saw Full Metal Alchemist, but in theory, at least, turning other elements in to gold is actually possible, though not via a chemical method (Chemistry is basically the study of the transfer of electrons and hence can't change the atoms themselves) but by atom smashing. Quite ironic since alchemy is the ancestor of modern chemistry...

Gold is an element, atomic no 79 (I think... need to check). That means that in the nucleus of gold, there are 79 protons (and neutrons as well, but the number of neutrons can vary, hence there are different isotopes of gold). By combining elements that have smaller number of protons in their nucleus (called fusion) or by spliting elements that have more protons in their nucleus (called fission), you can end up with a bunch of atoms with 79 protons in their nucleus, ie gold. You can smash atoms together in extremly high speeds and/or in extremely high temperatures (over 180 million degrees celcius) in order to do a fusion. To do a fission, you'll need unstable nucleii that will split apart once you hit it with neutrons (that's how nuclear fission works), but the results of this is rather unpredictable and hence can't really be used as a method of Alchemy. Similar fusion experiments, however have been done in laboratories around the world, not searching for gold but super-heavy elements with atomic numbers higher than 92 (anything with atomic number higher than 92 are elements that you can't find in nature. But thanks to atom smashing, you get stupid stuff like uniuniunium that has atomic number 111 and can only exist for a nanosecond or something... :notrust). Oh, and btw, in nature, stars are the ultimate "element creators" as they smash particles together to release energy, which result in new, heavier elements (which is one of the reasons why light elements such as hydrogen is the most abundant in the universe and the heavy elements such as Fe are more rare). So don't get surprised if on some old stars out there there's gold... (in their gaseous, or even plasmic, state, of course. :P)

However, I recall that the energy required to smash coal (carbon) atoms to form gold is so high that the value of the final product isn't worth it.

[Miderauchi no Hitokiri]

alchemy sort of more or less can be done( I think that's what the sun does for energy really I don't know it's vacation and my focus is on math)

course in the immortal words of my friend Alex" Equivalent Exchange can be done!!"* trades milk carton for someone elses. Cheesy smile*

[Inuyashamish]

*draws a transmutation circle, claps hands, and pushes them on the circle*

nope, my tv didnt fix.

[greeds_demonized_angel]

I believe it can...don't ask me why, I just do =D

[qOcOp]

Yes. we can draw circle shape things and make stuff out of nothing as long as its equilvalent trade.-_-

[nightfox123456]

Ok guys , here is something :
We would need energy to move the atoms,if telekinisis existed
this would be a possible way to manipulate maze, now we would draw circles to mark where we would change maze and how, for example outside of the circle we might say "change to liquid', that whould be possible if we could charge the selected piece of maze and add enery really fast so it could actually melt, now we would clap our hands to focus and touch the area to pass the energy , its impossiblee to give enery to an object without maze, (magnetic enery has air maze for example), then with hard trainging i thoink that we would be able to manipulate in a very creational way maze.
Now to do all these we need telekinisis, in a form that we can give extremely large amounts of enery. I hope i made sense, for those that didnt understand , if we had telekinisis we whould be able to perform alchemy like Edward :D

[wherezmytofu]

we currently have the technology to change one element to another, by bombarding it with electrons. ie turning lead to gold. however that created gold would stay radioactive for a couple million years

[DeathkillerD]

well some of the greatest scientists thought alchemy was real, Isaac Newton i believe, so who knows.

[Deathinstinct]

we currently have the technology to change one element to another, by bombarding it with electrons. ie turning lead to gold. however that created gold would stay radioactive for a couple million yearsYou're combining fact with fiction. Gold is 79, Lead is 82. The most common form of fission breaks U235 into various elements with numbers near 100, which is obviously about a 50/50 split.

well some of the greatest scientists thought alchemy was real, Isaac Newton i believe, so who knows.Many great scientists also thought everything was made of 4 elements: earth, fire, wind, and water. That doesn't mean they were right.

No, alchemy isn't possible. We can play with fusion and fission to alter an element, but that isn't alchemy.

[Kakashi Love]

I think anything can be done if we put our minds to it.

[basye]

its science to turn silver into gold and that doesnt work so no

[Rotc Girl]

I haven't read everything else, but the highest number of valence electrons is 8, and in the nobel gasses (neon, argon, krypton, xenon and radon) the numbere can be expanded if the gas is bonded to florine. I think it can naturaly get up to around 10 or 12.
But anyway, the way I understand it, alchemy is the changing of properties of matter, and the most basic way of changing matter is to change the number of protons/neutrons in an atom. Electrons only control the charge and how the element reacts with other elements, which is an important property, but not one that determines what an element is. That is how you can change lead into gold, but it requires a star and a lot of time. You can turn lead into gold by decaying the lead, but again, that takes time and a star.
So yeah, alchemy is possible.

[Fojos]

Alchemy is real and still exists. I can just tell you one thing, it has alot to do with minerals and gold.


No, alchemy isn't possible. We can play with fusion and fission to alter an element, but that isn't alchemy.

Alchemy isn't magic, and what you said there is exactly one of the things real alchemy is.

[HugeGuy]

Can nanotechnology help?

[SeruraRenge]

Can nanotechnology help?

nanites are designed for the rapid regeneration/reconstruction/construction of something, or at least something in that sense. Due to their size, nanites can aid in breaking something apart, but I dun know how they could turn it into something else.

[UnnamedShinobi]

The alchemy that is in FMA could ofcourse never be done IRL, thinking otherwise would be stupid.

[Portgas D. Ace]

nope can't be done

[Foreshadow]

No, it can't be done.

Just a thought on some of these comments: (anime spoilers)
Some of you are saying that where the energy for the alchemy comes from is never explained, but it actually was in the anime. When Ed was taken to the other side of the gate and met up with Hoenheim (the first time), it was explained that the energy from the deaths and war in our world was used to power the alchemy in the Fullmetal Alchemist world. The gate is almost like a power cable running from one world to the other.
Just thought I'd throw that out there.

[jermaine@123]

i really dont know but some ppl think so just cuz its science

[Halcyon Days]

Since VooDoo is real I say that anything is possible.. I have seen people do things in real life that i only thought were possible in anime..

[Cipher]

-_- Alchemy is only real and only science in the way that Geocentricism and Aristole's Elemental Sphere's are real and scientific... Alchemy comes from a bizzare mix of occult beliefs that objects possess a sort of soul or essence, and that manipulating that soul you could do things from transform lead to gold, or make a little fake human (a homunculus). But the actual process resembles something from a satanic ritual more than chemistry (go to wiki and look up the ingredients for homunculi).

The closest thing today to accomplish what alchemy claimed to do is using atom smashers to add or knock off protons of certain elements.

[Animal8074]

Yes and no.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alchemy

http://www.levity.com/alchemy/home.html

[Living_Alchemy]

ALthough most alchemist have discarded the thought of alchemy, some think that it may still be possible to do if you have a big enough power source.

I was once told by a japanese scientist that they're working on alchemy and that all that they realy need is the energy that could be created from 30 lightining bolts and something that could handle the power and still force the atoms into the wanted shape and form of the intended item.

This can olny be done by, like in FMA, using the exact same amount of atoms in the thing that you're going to sacrifice as the thing that you want to create, "Equivalent exchange".

[Roy Mustang]

there is a difrent, non magical alchemy

[chaosas]

Im not sure if this sounds dumb to anyone but who thinks alchemy can be done? How many of you think that? :confused

Sure it can be done, I do it pretty often. The other day I tried to ressurect my dog and here's what happened:

http://www.weirdspot.com/images/uploads/monsterdog.jpg

I knew I should have put less sulfur there...

[Sōsuke Aizen]

no, are world sucks.

[Ork]

Im not sure if this sounds dumb to anyone but who thinks alchemy can be done? How many of you think that? :confused

As you're posting this in the thread about the anime, I'll assume you're talking about Fullmetal Alchemist Alchemy. The answer is: No, Are you stupid?
Thanks for a lolworthy thread.

[Mider T]

Im not sure if this sounds dumb to anyone but who thinks alchemy can be done? How many of you think that? :confused

:facepalm Somebody needs to pay more attention in History.

[Susano-o]

Some people tried to make gold with alchemy and failed miserably.

[The Mexican]

Alchemy is like old chemistry basically where people tried to transmute misc. metals into gold and other stuff it never worked and they were usually poisoned by there mixing of chemicals. so in short no.

[Last of the Ushihas]

It's possible, as long as supernatrual powers are possible. Other than that, the closest things are chemical processes and science.

[Lawliet]

technically we can turn lead into gold... but it costs so much to change something at that level that it will never be feasable.

[Jetstorm]

Not in the way this show portrays it.

[bon68]

not like in Full Metal.
Alchemy is chemistry. Its practised in many countries, has been for centuries.
buuut they cant transmute like on the cartoon.
instead they use chemicals and test tubes.
and sciency stuff.

[Ryuk]

I seriously doubt it.

[Kira U. Masaki]

yea alchemy existed but like other said it was basically chemistry and science, i think one of the big things people tried to do was actually to convert gold from lead, but i dont think its possible realistically

[MetalGearAddict]

I think it can. It is actually a science and the bassis for chemistry. Also I am a firm beleiver in the theory that Nicholas Flamel used alchemy to become immortal. Plus back when alchemy flourished Alchemists didn't have the technology to fake what they were doing. Oh, and that theory that if you can use both parts of your brain you can perform alchemy is just bull crap. Although Alchemy is a science transmutation like in Full Metal was the most frequent form of alchemy. Transmutation requires complex formulas and many weeks of preperation and knowledge of ancient language.
All Transmutation is, is using chemicles to change objects at an atomic level and reforming them in the form of something else. I think that with the right recipy and a bit of gold you have a formula for making lead to gold. It works on the basic principals of a teleporter by using the aatoms in an area or object and reforming (or forming) them to be the desired object.