The Works of John Playfair ...: With a Memoir of the Author ... |
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Page 53
of the strata , it is inferred , that they have been raised up by the action of some expansive force placed under them . This force , which has burst in pieces the solid pavement on which the ocean rests , and has raised up rocks from ...
of the strata , it is inferred , that they have been raised up by the action of some expansive force placed under them . This force , which has burst in pieces the solid pavement on which the ocean rests , and has raised up rocks from ...
Page 59
... objection to the consolidation of minerals by subterraneous heat , that many substances are found in the bowels of the earth in a state altogether unlike that into which they are brought by the action of our fires at the surface .
... objection to the consolidation of minerals by subterraneous heat , that many substances are found in the bowels of the earth in a state altogether unlike that into which they are brought by the action of our fires at the surface .
Page 61
Limestone is not found in the bowels of the earth having the causticity which it acquires by the action of fire , and hence one might conclude that it had never been exposed to the action of that element . But the experiments of Dr ...
Limestone is not found in the bowels of the earth having the causticity which it acquires by the action of fire , and hence one might conclude that it had never been exposed to the action of that element . But the experiments of Dr ...
Page 67
Experiments made by M. Dalton , since the death of Dr Hutton , show that there is great reason for supposing that the air has no chemical action whatever on the aqueous vapour contained in it .-- Manchester Memoirs , Vol . V. p . 538 .
Experiments made by M. Dalton , since the death of Dr Hutton , show that there is great reason for supposing that the air has no chemical action whatever on the aqueous vapour contained in it .-- Manchester Memoirs , Vol . V. p . 538 .
Page 79
Here , therefore , the immediate contact of the two rocks is not only visible , but is curiously dissected and laid open by the action of the waves . The rugged tops of the schistus are seen penetrating into the horizontal beds ...
Here , therefore , the immediate contact of the two rocks is not only visible , but is curiously dissected and laid open by the action of the waves . The rugged tops of the schistus are seen penetrating into the horizontal beds ...
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Page 81 - The mind seemed to grow giddy by looking so far into the abyss of time ; and while we listened with, earnestness and admiration to the philosopher who was now unfolding to us the order and series of these wonderful events, we became sensible how much farther reason may sometimes go than imagination can venture to follow.
Page 335 - ... the three angles of a triangle are together equal to two right angles, although it is not known to all.
Page 309 - ... that the mean longitude of the first satellite, minus three times that of the second, plus twice that of the third, is always equal to two right angles.
Page 125 - The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power, And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave, Await alike the inevitable hour — The paths of glory lead but to the grave.
Page 325 - In one of these, where the dictates of Aristotle are still listened to as infallible decrees, and where the infancy of science is mistaken for its maturity, the mathematical sciences have never flourished ; and the scholar has no means of advancing beyond the mere elements of geometry.
Page 522 - An account of experiments for determining the length of the pendulum vibrating seconds in the latitude of London.
Page 55 - It is unreasonable, indeed, to suppose that such marks should any where exist. The Author of nature has not given laws to the universe, which, like the institutions of men, carry in themselves the elements of their own destruction ; he has not permitted in his works any symptom of infancy or of old age, or any sign by which we may estimate either their future or their past duration.
Page 56 - The Author of nature has not given laws to the universe, which, like the institutions of men, carry in themselves the elements of their own destruction. He has not permitted, in his works, any symptom of infancy or of old age, or any sign by which we may estimate either their future or their past duration. He may put an end, as he no doubt gave a beginning, to the present system, at some determinate period; but we may safely conclude, that this great catastrophe will not be brought about by any of...
Page 301 - Between the laws by which the tides diminish from their maximum at the full and change, to their minimum at the first and third quarters, and by which they increase again from the minimum to the maximum, as deduced from the observations at Brest, and as determined by the theory of gravitation, there is an exact coincidence. 2. According to theory, the height of the tides...
Page 439 - ... most general rule that we are enabled to give admits of many exceptions. The violation of the order of events among the phenomena of the former class, the suspension of gravity, for example, the deviation of any of the stars from their places or their courses in the heavens, &c., — these are facts of which the improbability is so strong that no testimony can prevail against it.