Abstract
IF name the spectroscope as the most important scientific invention of the latter half of this century, I shall not fear to be accused of exaggeration. Photography has rendered vast services in recording astronomical and biological phenomena, and it even supplies us with indirect means of studying ray vibrations to which the human retina does not respond. The electro-acoustic devices of Edison and his co-workers permit almost magical communication between human beings. Ruhmkorff's coil and the Geissler tube have rendered notable service in physical investigations; and the electric lamp promises to aid in exploring the internal parts of living animals as well as in studying the organic forms of the deep sea. But in the spectroscope we possess a power that enables us to peer into the very heart of Nature. In the extent of its grasp and the varied character of its applicability it surpasses the telescope, and at least rivals the microscope. It enables the astronomer to defy immeasurable distance, and to study the physical condition and the chemical composition of the sun and the stars as if they were within touch, and even to ascertain the direction of their movements.
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References
Address to the Chemical Section of the British Association, Birmingham Meeting, Chem. News, vol. liv. p. 123. "On the Fractionation of Yttria," Chem. News, vol. liv. p. 157. Proc. Roy. Soc., vol. xl. (1886) p. 505.
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Recent Researches on the Rare Earths as Interpreted by the Spectroscope . Nature 39, 537–543 (1889). https://doi.org/10.1038/039537e0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/039537e0