The Wonders of Optics

The Wonders of Optics

The present work needs but little introduction to the English public. The author, M. F. Marion, who holds a high official scientific position in Paris, is well known, especially in Europe, as a popular writer on the Wonders of Optics, and kindred subjects. As a rule, the original text has been strictly adhered to by the Translator, but in a few instances certain anecdotes of a local character have been altered so as to be more generally applicable, or condensed to make room for the chapter on the Spectroscope, which is entirely original. The Eye is at once the most wonderful and the most useful of all our organs of sense. It is especially by means of the eye that we gain a knowledge of the exterior world. Our other senses are far more limited in their action: thus the sense of touch only extends to objects within our reach; the sense of taste is only a delicate and exquisite modification of the sense of touch; the sense of smell can only be exercised on substances that are close to us; and the use of our ears is limited by the distance at which the loudest sound ceases to impress them. But the eye has the privilege of extending its dominion, whether for mere enjoyment or for serious instruction, far beyond the limits of this little world. Not only is it the origin of all our ideas upon 16every object that comes within its ken; not only does it reveal to us our own position and that of our surroundings; but, thanks to the discoveries of modern science, it is able to admire, on the one hand, a world of infinite minuteness that remained unknown to us for centuries, and, on the other, the immeasurable immensity of the starry universe. Admirable as the eye undoubtedly is through the possession of the power of vision, it is also capable of enchanting us by its own particular beauties. Not to speak of its internal mechanism, which we shall consider very fully by and by, let us for a moment examine its outward appearance. Have you never, dear reader, been enchanted with a pair of soft and gentle eyes, or with a couple of black orbs veiled with long dark lashes, or with those wondrous eyes that rival the heavens in colour and depth, shedding on you rays of light whose mute eloquence was irresistible? If it be true that mans face is the canvas upon which the affections and desires of his mind are depicted as soon as they are formed, the eyes are unquestionably the central point of the picture, and it is in them, as in a looking-glass, that every sentiment that passes across our brain is reflected. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 65114
Author: Marion, Fulgence
Release Date: Apr 19, 2021
Format: eBook
Language: English

Contributors

Translator: Quin, Charles W. (Charles William)