Editing 1860 in science (section)

==Chemistry==
* September 3–5 – [[Karlsruhe Congress]], the first international meeting of chemists.
* [[Marcellin Berthelot]] rediscovers and names [[acetylene]].
* [[Robert Bunsen]] and [[Gustav Kirchhoff]], using their newly improved [[spectroscope]], discover and name [[caesium]] in [[mineral water]] from [[Bad Dürkheim]], Germany.<ref>{{cite journal|title=The discovery of the elements. XIII. Some spectroscopic discoveries|pages=1413–1434|last=Weeks|first=Mary Elvira|authorlink=Mary Elvira Weeks|doi=10.1021/ed009p1413|journal=[[Journal of Chemical Education]]|volume=9|issue=8|year=1932|bibcode=1932JChEd...9.1413W}}</ref>
* [[Stanislao Cannizzaro]], resurrecting Avogadro's ideas regarding diatomic molecules, compiles a table of [[atomic weight]]s and presents it at the 1860 [[Karlsruhe Congress]], ending decades of conflicting atomic weights and molecular formulas, and leading to Mendeleev's discovery of the periodic law.<ref>Eric R. Scerri,''The Periodic Table: Its Story and Its Significance'', Oxford University Press, 2006.</ref>
* [[Albert Niemann (chemist)|Albert Niemann]] makes a detailed analysis of the [[coca]] leaf, isolating and purifying the [[crystalline]] [[alkaloid]] which he calls [[cocaine]].<ref>Niemann, Albert. ''[[On a New Organic Base in the Coca Leaves]]'' ("Über eine neue organische Base in den Cocablättern", published version of Ph.D. dissertation); {{cite journal|volume=153|issue=2|pages=129–256|year=1860|title=Ueber eine neue organische Base in den Cocablättern|doi=10.1002/ardp.18601530202|journal=[[Archiv der Pharmazie]]|last1=Niemann|first1=Albert|url=https://zenodo.org/record/1424541}}</ref>
* The [[Erlenmeyer flask]] is created by German chemist [[Emil Erlenmeyer]].