who proposed that atoms are the basic units of matter
Atom
The idea that matter is made up of discrete units is a very old idea , appearing in many ancient cultures such as Greece and India . The word `` atom '' was coined by the ancient Greek philosophers Leucippus and his pupil Democritus . However , these ideas were founded in philosophical and theological reasoning rather than evidence and experimentation . As a result , their views on what atoms look like and how they behave were incorrect . They also could not convince everybody , so atomism was but one of a number of competing theories on the nature of matter . It was not until the 19th century that the idea was embraced and refined by scientists , when the blossoming science of chemistry produced discoveries that only the concept of atoms could explain . 
The idea that matter is made up of discrete units is a very old idea , appearing in many ancient cultures such as Greece and India . The word `` atom '' was coined by the ancient Greek philosophers Leucippus and his pupil Democritus . However , these ideas were founded in philosophical and theological reasoning rather than evidence and experimentation . As a result , their views on what atoms look like and how they behave were incorrect . They also could not convince everybody , so atomism was but one of a number of competing theories on the nature of matter . It was not until the 19th century that the idea was embraced and refined by scientists , when the blossoming science of chemistry produced discoveries that only the concept of atoms could explain .
The idea that matter is made up of discrete units is a very old idea , appearing in many ancient cultures such as Greece and India . It was not until the 19th century that the idea was embraced and refined by scientists , when the blossoming science of chemistry produced discoveries that only the concept of atoms could explain .
The idea that matter is made up of discrete units is a very old idea , appearing in many ancient cultures such as Greece and India . It was not until the 19th century that the idea was embraced and refined by scientists , when the blossoming science of chemistry produced discoveries that only the concept of atoms could explain .