ABSTRACT
The concept ofmatter composed of empty space filledwith small indivisible particles hadbeen
proposed as early as several centuries BC, in particular by the Greek Demokritos. However, the
Aristotelean concept of continuous matter prevailed for centuries until the development, circa
1800, of modern quantitative chemistry by scientists including A.L. de Lavoisier, J. Dalton, J.L.
Gay-Lussac,A.Avogadro, andL.J. Proust. Theirworkdeveloped the principle of the composition
of compound materials from well-defined proportions of chemical elements.