William Whewell, D.D. ...: An Account of His Writings with Selections from His Literary and Scientific Correspondence, Volume 2Macmillan, 1876 |
Common terms and phrases
able Adieu afraid Airy appears arguments Astronomy Athenæum believe British Association Cambridge certainly CLIFF COTTAGE COLL course dare say DEAR FORBES DEAR HARE DEAR HERSCHEL DEAR JONES DEAR SIR JAMES diamagnetic doctrines doubt Dublin Edinburgh Edinburgh Review English expect feel friends G. C. Lewis geological give glaciers glad to hear hexameters hope induction interest John Mill labour lectures letter LODGE London look LOWESTOFT LUBBOCK mathematics matter means meeting metaphysical mind moral Murchison notion object obliged observations opinion paper Peacock perhaps persons philosophy pleasure Pray present principles printed probably published Quetelet reason recollect Sedgwick seen sermon shew Society soon speculations spondees suppose talk tell theory thing thought tides tion told TRIN TRINITY COLLEGE truly truth University views WHEWELL wish word write written
Popular passages
Page 364 - Hence it would appear that the two classes of magnetic bodies are those which place their length parallel or according to the terrestrial magnetic lines, and those which place their length transverse to such lines. Keeping the preposition dia for the latter, the preposition para or ana might be used for the former ; perhaps para would be best, as the word ' parallel,' in which it is involved, would be a technical memory for it.
Page 289 - Whewell deeply resented this violation of academic neutrality: 'it was impossible,' he wrote, ' to listen to the Proceedings of the Statistical Section on Friday without perceiving that they involved exactly what it was most necessary and most desired to exclude from our Proceedings...
Page 130 - The neglect of this practice appears to me a serious deficiency in the arrangements of the Royal Society. I have written very hastily the first ideas which offer themselves, and I must beg you to consider them rather as thrown out for your consideration than as asserted in preference to anything else. I shall be extremely glad to hear that your plan or any modification of it is likely to be carried into effect. I am really sorry that it is out of my power to attend the meeting in person. I am one...
Page 182 - The word is not a substantive in Greek, but it may easily be so taken, and I am persuaded that the brevity and simplicity of the terms you will thus have will in a fortnight procure their universal acceptation. The anion is that which goes to the anode, the cation is that which goes to the cathode. The...
Page 129 - I think in some way to avoid the crowd of lay members whose names stand on the lists of the Royal Society. All committees on memoirs presented or on any subject concerned with science ought to give public reports of their views. The neglect of this practice appears to me a serious deficiency in the arrangements of the Royal Society. I have written very hastily the first ideas which offer themselves, and I must beg you to consider them rather as thrown out for your consideration than as asserted in...
Page 291 - Chalmers, and he allowed the proposal to be intolerable) an ambulatory body, composed partly of men of reputation and partly of a miscellaneous crowd, to go round year by year from town to town and at each place to discuss the most inflammatory and agitating questions of the day...
Page 16 - not enough philosophy." Now the way to prevent such a clamour would have been to have given good, intelligible, but difficult, physical problems, things which people would see they could not do their own way, and which would excite their curiosity sufficiently to make them thank you for your way of doing them. Till some one arises to do this, or something like it, they will not believe even though one were translated to them from the French.
Page 181 - I would beg you to reconsider the suggestion of anode and cathode which I offered before. It is very obvious that these words are much simpler than those in your proof sheet, and the advantage of simplicity will be felt very strongly when the words are once firmly established, as by your paper I do not in the least degree doubt that they will be. As to the objection to anode, I do not think it is worth hesitating about. Anodos and cathodos do really mean in Greek a way up and a way down; and anodos...
Page 179 - ID cases where such causes operate, new terms inevitably arise, and it is very fortunate when those, upon whom the introduction of these devolves, look forwards as carefully as you do to the general bearing and future prospects of the subject; and it is an additional advantage when they humour philologists so far as to avoid gross incongruities of language. I was well satisfied with most of the terms that you mention; and shall be glad and gratified to assist in freeing them from false assumptions...
Page 294 - The absurdity of such a plea is, I think, undeniable, and the inconsistency of such discussions with our fundamental constitution. And this is not a question of form merely. For what kind of institution do we become, if we allow ourselves to be made an ambulatory meeting for agitating in assemblies, when both eminent and notorious men (Dr. Chalmers and Robert Owen) address a miscellaneous crowd on the sorest and angriest subjects which occur among the topics of the day? If we cannot get rid of this...