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A CRITIQUE
129 processes are, according to Jain views (as we have seen)” inherent properties of the material universe Paramāņu, being indivisible is, of course, not fissionable but all other categories of matter undergo both these processes
Modern science, also, (as we have seen}&accepts that fission and fusion are essential whenever energy is released, whether it is the chemical energy from coal or the atomic energy from nuclei of uranium or deuterium Again, the process of spontaneous decay of the atoms consisting of emission of alpha particles is not restricted to the so called radio active element, all element heavier than silver (which, as we know, occupies the central position in the atomic table) are subject to the process of decay but the process is very very slow Release of enormous atomic energy through the fission process of Uranium nuclei and fusion process of the (heavy) hydrogen nuclei is already described in the previous chapter
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ATOMIC THEORY AND PARAMAŅUVADA HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF ATOMIC THEORY
In the West, Greek philosophy and science were born together at the beginning of the 6th century B C with the first Milesian philosopher Thales As we have seen, the idea of the smallest indivisible ultimate building blocks of matter came in connection with the elaboration of the concepts of being and becoming which characterised the first epoch of Greek philosophy But the atomic theory of matter was propounded much later by Democritus about 420 27 Chapter II pp 73-80 28 Chapter 1 pp 29-30
