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FIRST EDITIONS OF A NUMBER OF SIGNIFICANT PAPERS: PART I OF MICHELSON'S 1891 PAPER ON HIS NEWLY INVENTED INVESTIGATIVE TOOL, THE INTERFEROMETER also MICHELSON'S PAPER ON INTERFERENCE TECHNIQUES RELATED TO ASTRONOMICAL OBJECTS BEYOND THE RESOLUTION OF LARGE TELESCOPES also LORD RAYLEIGH'S IMPORTANT PAPER WITH THE FIRST CORRECT CALCULATIONS FOR USE IN PIN-HOLE PHOTOGRAPHYâ??THE EARLIEST TECHNICAL PAPER OF ITS KIND. MICHELSON: In Michelson's "On the Application." paper, the first American scientist to win a Nobel Prize, demonstrates the usefulness of the interferometer that he invented in 1887 and that bears his name. His invention dazzled the scientific world and "pioneer[ed] applications in such diverse fields as astronomy, atomic spectra and mensuration followed (Shankland, PT 27, 37). Michelson here used that interferometer to determine the length of the International Prototype Meter in terms of the cadmium red line wavelength - the value of the meter in luminous wavelengths. "The design of many interferometers used for infrared spectrometry today is based on that of the two-beam interferometer originally designed by Michelson. The Michelson interferometer is a device that generates an interference pattern by splitting a beam of light into two paths and recombining them. The introduced spatial delay of one of the optical paths causes the appearance of fringes by forcing constructive or destructive interference. By recording the power at different spatial positions an interferogram is acquired" (Parramon, Far-Infared Spectro-Spatial, 17). The interference patterns generated by interferometers contain information about the object or phenomenon being studied. They are often used to make very small measurements that are not achievable any other way" (LIGO, Caltech). It is worth nothing that the basic structure of "LIGO's interferometers differs little from the interferometer that Michelson designed over 125 years ago, but with some added features" (ibid). MICHELSON: In the "Visibility of Interference-Fringes" paper, Michelson "set the mathematical principles of stellar interferometry" (Garcia, Michelson Wide-Field Stellar Interferometry, 2). LORD RAYLEIGH: For 10 years Rayleigh worked on pin hole camera formulas hoping to find the formula that acts or behaves as the best lens. The calculations for the optimal diameter of the hole in order to achieve the sharpest possible image were first proposed by Rayleigh in this paper - calculations still in use today. The first publication of this paper has been incorrectly attributed to Rayleigh's 1891 paper in Nature, however that was published in June and the Phil Mag paper (offered here) was published in January. ALSO: J. J. Thomson "On the Conductivity of Hot Gases" & J. J. Thomson "On the Illustration of the Properties of the Electric Field by Means of Tables of Electrostatic Induction". ALSO: E. Sarasin and L. De la Rive "On Hertz's Electrical Vibrations in Air". This experiment repeated Hertz's long-wave experiments and established complete agreement with Maxwell's theory. ALSO: Also Carey Lea's series "On Allotropic Silver Parts I, II, & III (Lea, pp. 207-238; pp. 320-329; pp. 497-504) complete with 3 gorgeous color plates of images resulting from experiments conducted on selenium -- specifically, the effects of electricity, heat, mechanical force, chemical action, and light. NOTE: We also offer Parts I & II together (meaning both the 1891 volume and the 1892) of Michelson's "On the Application of Interference Methods to Spectroscopic Measurements"; the volumes are offered in a separate listing, but unfortunately both are compromised copies. CONDITION & DETAILS: London: Richard and John E. Taylor. 8vo. [4], viii, [524], 8, [4]. 8 plates. Ex-libris bearing discreet title page stamp. Bound in three quarter calf over marbled paper boards; calf scuffed at edges; Gilt-ruled bands and lettering at spine. Tightly bound. Clean throughout. Very good.
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