Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1908-06-26
g WNISPEKINGS OF AN OLD PINE"
A rlasked Arrangement of rlodern Science,
With Instructive Readings.

THE following work. Whiperngs
Old Pine Vol H. by Joseph Batel from the Springfield (fass)
The article following BY Mr. Bte reviewing the review appeared in
the paper, June 1oo8].
Ellen whspcrngs of Old Pine" is a challenge
the usual critics of Natuealng, despite its pecua title. 1t is
elaborate indictment
embody his revolutionary the of
series of conversations between old pnee and young
of remarkable requirements The old pine proves be
crusted conservative for he listens with approval nepos
only few leading questions while Ellen pieces the whole
fabric of accepted physical theory.
OF the book hopecssy astray
cepons but unlike of the other works with which
must be cacd that pity reegate it to such
onshp is by ignorant production without
certain value to the reader equipped with sufficient knowledge
escape being mied The author forth in the possible
way the theories proposes demosh quotes literally
and at length from standard scientific writings These
interesting collection, many being difficult
There interesting paragraphs from Papon Airy Ivory
Waerson and others, we'll such Kelvin Tyn-
DALI and our good old standby, Ganot
En chief quarrel with the wave theory of sound
and light but even Eucdean geometry she admits but sheed
fragments to her philosophy Synthetic geometry
criticised before the ground that proving the
obvious and proposals have been replace by
analytical Cartesian methods in the school Ellen
herself furnishes argument holding Euclid
She takes the propositions In equal circles equal
angles at the center intercept equal the circumference
conversely Her demonstration divergence of an
angle uniform and she takes great credit because
Iwods instead of the of the usual proof OF
she might just as we'll have reduced
the nature of angles Later indeed she phrase
because the of the circle integral
of her demonstrations In these the that
limited explanation proof and lust such blum
de that intelligent teaching of Euclid ought prevent
Trgonomcty and ogarthms subjected any vertigi
nous alterations though clipped and shrunkcn greatly
avowed dsapprova of analytic methods which haraceres as
manipulation OF Symbols How many students will
dislike to such manipulation which makes large part mahema
cal physics like the a serpent upon rock"
Once least in each generation looks
about him and pecees that the earth SPHERICAL but on the
whole vsib and obviously fiat Shall he theories
OF the scientists against the testimony of his against
his scnse On the contrary book exposing
the absrdy Of the theorists potonand generally
siderable following among "pracca people, This is quite COM
abandoned the spherical of tooda form-cbanod
the orange into a doughnut
Now the sincere physicist but parallel difficulty
with Elens theories of sound and light Indeed they much
harder to swallow than doughnu She
Newton theory that light consists of nncsma particles of matter
projected at high velocity by the illumination but aopts
parallel explanation of sound interesting recall that the
crucial experiment which established the LIGHT among
physicists the determination of and in water
which fatty contradcted the law of refracon from the
emission theory by Newton himself Perhaps even Een kep
cism regarding the existence of sound might give
way before the beautiful photographs taken by Prof.
Wood and others
Elens emission theories likely shake modern
physics than her geometry sppant Eucd but her conversa
lions make interesting extensive onc-o77 PAGES
octave The book well printed and scen-
tine diagrams many ha-tone pictures of Vermont ceney-Ecn
or WhsPerng OF an Old Pneby Joseph Battc-Middcbury
VT American publishing company London: Arthur F. Bird
1908