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First proposed the existence of an ultimate particle. Used the word "atomos" to describe this particle.
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was a proponent of the continuum. He believed in the four elements of air, earth, water and fire. Aristotle felt that regardless of the number of times you cut a form of matter in half, you would always have a smaller piece of that matter. This view held sway for 2000 years primarily because Aristotle was the tutor of Alexander the Great.
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developed the Phlogiston theory which dominated chemistry between 1670 and 1790. Basically, when something burned, it lost phlogiston to the air (after all, you could see the phlogiston leaving) A problem with the theory was that burning of metals resulted in an increase in the mass. This problem was solved by assigning negative mass to phlogiston.
