Question

An Indian philosopher who said that the smallest particles normally exist in a combined form which gives us various forms of matter is:
(A) Pakudha Katayama
(B) Lavoisier
(C) Maharishi Kanad
(D) None of the above

Answer 1

Hint: Around 500 BC, ancient Indian and Greek philosophers have always admired the unknown and unseen form of matter. Around the same era, the idea of divisibility of matter was considered long back in India and ancient Greek philosophers – Democritus and Leucippus suggested that a stage will come when particles obtained cannot be divided further.

Complete step by step answer:
Maharishi Kanad, who was an Indian philosopher states that when we divide the matter will get smaller and smaller particles beyond a certain time further division will not be possible. According to Maharishi Kanad, these particles are named as paramanu.
Pakudha Katayama, an Indian Philosopher said that these particles normally exist in a combined form which gives us various forms of matter.
All these philosophical considerations given by ancient Indian scientists are not much experimental work to validate these ideas could be done until the eighteenth century.
Antoine L.Lavoisier established the two important laws of chemical combination by which laid the foundation of chemical sciences.
So, the correct answer is “Option A”.

Note: Scientists recognized the difference between elements and compounds by the end of the 18th century and naturally became interested in how elements combine then what happens after the combine. After so many experiments, two laws of the combination were established are the law of conservation of mass and the law of constant proportions.