拉瓦节(1743～1794年)

Lavoisier, Antoine(-Laurent)

法国化学家，被视为现代化学之父。他研究燃烧、氧化（参阅oxidation-reduction）、气体（尤其是在空气中的气体），推翻了燃素的教条：物质燃烧过程中会放出一种实体的成分（燃素），这种理论已经支配了一个世纪之久。他找出化学反应中质量守恒的原则（也就是说，反应物的总重量一定等於产物的重量），厘清了化学元素与化合物之间的差异，并在化学术语（为氧、氢、碳命名）现代体系的设计中扮演一定的角色。他属於在化学研究中使用量化步骤的第一批人，而他的实验装置、精确的方法、有说服力的推理，加上最後的发现，使化学发生革命性变化。他也致力於物理学问题，尤其是热、发酵、呼吸和动物。他独立致富，同时保有公仆生涯，在金融、经济、农业、教育、社会福利等方面有显着的才干。身为改革者和政治自由派，他活跃於法国大革命，但逐渐遭受极端分子攻击而被送上断头台。

English version：

1743～1794年

Lavoisier, Antoine(-Laurent)

French chemist, regarded as the father of modern chemistry. His work on combustion, oxidation (see oxidation-reduction), and gases (especially those in air) overthrew the phlogiston doctrine, which held that a component of matter (phlogiston) was given off by a substance in the process of combustion. That theory had held sway for a century. He formulated the principle of the conservation of mass (i.e., that the weights of the reactants must add up to the weights of the products) in chemical reactions, clarified the distinction between elements and compounds, and was instrumental in devising the modern system of chemical nomenclature (naming oxygen, hydrogen, and carbon). He was among the first to use quantitative procedures in chemical investigations, and his experimental ingenuity, exact methods, and cogent reasoning, along with the resultant discoveries, revolutionized chemistry. He also worked on physical problems, especially heat, and on fermentation, respiration, and animals. Independently wealthy, he had a simultaneous career as a public servant of remarkable versatility in areas including finance, economics, agriculture, education, and social welfare. A reformer and political liberal, he was active in the French Revolution, but came under increasing attack from extremists and was guillotined.