Opticks: Or, A Treatise of the Reflections, Refractions, Inflections and Colours of Light

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William Innys, 1730 - 382 pages
 

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Page 376 - Space, as most conduced to the end for which he formed them ; and that these primitive Particles being Solids, are incomparably harder than any porous Bodies compounded of them ; even so very hard, as never to wear or break in pieces ; no ordinary Power being able to divide what God himself made one in the first Creation.
Page 377 - ... to derive two or three general principles of motion from phenomena, and afterwards to tell us how the properties and actions of all corporeal things follow from those manifest principles, would be a very great step in philosophy, though the causes of those principles were not yet discovered: and therefore I scruple not to propose the principles of motion above mentioned, they being of very general extent, and leave their causes to be found out.
Page 380 - And although the arguing from experiments and observations by Induction be no demonstration of general conclusions, yet it is the best way of arguing which the nature of things admits of, and may be looked upon as so much the stronger by how much the Induction is more general.
Page 380 - By this way of analysis we may proceed from compounds to ingredients ; and from motions to the forces producing them ; and, in general, • from effects to their causes ; and from particular causes to more general ones, till the argument end in the most general.
Page 381 - And if Natural Philosophy in all its parts, by pursuing this method, shall at length be perfected; the bounds of Moral Philosophy will be also enlarged. For so far as we can know by Natural Philosophy what is the First cause, what power He has over us, and what benefits we receive from Him; so far our duty towards Him, as well as that towards one another, will appear to us by the light of Nature.
Page 376 - ... even so very hard as never to wear or break in pieces ; no ordinary power being able to divide what God himself made one, in the first creation. While the particles continue entire, they may compose bodies of one and the same nature and texture in all ages ; but should they wear away or break in pieces, the nature of things depending on them would be changed.
Page 378 - And so must the Uniformity in the Bodies of Animals, they having generally a right and a left side shaped alike, and on either side of their Bodies two Legs behind, and either two Arms, or two Legs, or two Wings before upon their Shoulders, and between their Shoulders a Neck running down into a Back-bone, and a Head upon it; and in the Head two Ears, two Eyes, a Nose, a Mouth, and a Tongue, alike situated.
Page 375 - Fermentation, by which the Heart and Blood of Animals are kept in perpetual Motion and Heat; the inward Parts of the Earth are constantly warm'd, and in some places grow very hot; Bodies burn and shine, Mountains take fire, the Caverns of the Earth are blown up, and the Sun continues violently hot and lucid, and warms all things by his Light.
Page 353 - ... Salt and unites with it, and in Distillation the Spirit of the common Salt or Salt-petre comes over much easier than it would do before, and the acid part of the Spirit of Vitriol...
Page 378 - For while comets move in very eccentric orbs in all manner of positions, blind fate could never make all the planets move one and the same way in orbs concentric, some inconsiderable irregularities excepted which may have risen from the mutual actions of comets and planets upon one another, and which will be apt to increase till this system wants a reformation.

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