History of Alchemy Explained: Ancient Science Before Chemistry
For the Love of History - world history, women’s history, weird history

History of Alchemy Explained: Ancient Science Before Chemistry

B2Upper-intermediateMarch 6, 202641 min
  • History

When most people think of alchemy, they imagine a medieval wizard desperately trying to turn lead into gold. But the real story of alchemy is far stranger and far more important because hidden within those mysterious experiments were the early discoveries that would eventually become modern chemistry. In this episode of For the Love of History, we explore the origins of alchemy and how early experiments in metallurgy, medicine, and chemistry shaped the scientific world we know today. What began as practical craft knowledge in ancient Egypt and Greece eventually evolved into a global...

Play episode

Opens the player: the full transcript, every word clickable, with translation and flashcards.

Try it: tap any word

Real sentences from the start of this episode. Every word is marked with its level.

Sentence 1 of 12 · 0:30

, .

So it's a very difficult game.

Hear this sentence

Tap a word to see its meaning in your language.

Do you know these words?

8 harder words from this episode. Tap one to see what it means, then mark it.

  • B22:01
  • B29:19
  • B212:09
  • B218:53
  • C123:47
  • C127:35
  • C135:26
  • B237:16

Mark a few words and we'll tell you how this episode fits your level.

Is this episode right for you?

B2

B2 · Upper-intermediate

Comfortable if you already follow TV news

A1 30%A2 34%B1 20%B2 12%C1 3%
  • 85% of the words are B1 or easier.
  • 140 words a minute: a natural pace.
  • 199 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.

Transcript

The opening of the episode. The whole transcript is in the player.

0:30

On top of us, we have a small point of view. So it's a very difficult game. Perfect for the first, both journalists and all the job companies

1:05

with extra launchers. So, everyone is noticed? Yes. Of course.

1:09

What? The plot is exactly the same as the plot, including all the works of an animal. They are synchronized on app, web and desktop.

That was the opening. The rest of the episode (40 min) is in the player: every word clickable, with translation, saved words and flashcards.

Continue in the player

Automatically generated from the audio. May contain errors. Audio belongs to its publisher and is played from their feed. Rights holders can request removal — copyright & takedown policy