Abstract
THE letter of Prof. Greenhill (NATURE, vol. xxxv. p. 486) is both timely and suggestive. Herbert Spencer's chapter on space, time, matter, motion, and force, supplemented by his chapter on the persistence of force, in “First Principles of Philosophy,” gives all that can be desired by the student for a complete comprehension of the subject. One who assimilates the basic truths there so clearly given need never be perplexed by any statement found in the mechanical and mathematical text-books. It is simply impossible to use language in regard to these matters without employing expressions that are true only in a certain sense. We say that “the sun rises” and “the sun sets,” and that “the heavens revolve.” If these words are used to indicate the cause of the progressive shadows on a sun-dial, or the time of day, they serve a practical need as well as if they were true. But a student who should infer the constitution of the solar system from such phrases would go far astray.
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LANCASTER, I. Units of Weight, Mass, and Force. Nature 36, 102 (1887). https://doi.org/10.1038/036102b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/036102b0
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