Popular Lectures and Addresses

London: Macmillan and Co, 1891. FIRST EDITION OF VOLS. II & III; SECOND EDITION OF VOL. I.. With errata leaf in Volume I and errata slips tipped into Volumes II and III. Original publisher’s cloth; overall in excellent condition. Signature of T. Cope dated 8 November 1923 in each volume. First edition of Volumes II and III, second edition of Volume I. The first part contains lectures on the constitution of matter, including electrical units of measurement, elasticity viewed as possibly a mode of motion, the size of atoms, the wave theory of light, and on the age of the sun’s heat; part two treats geology and general physics, and includes lectures on geological time, geological dynamics, polar ice-caps, sources of energy in nature, and dissipation of energy; and the third part contains lectures on navigation, including the tides terrestrial magnetism, deep-sea sounding, and on the forces concerned in the laying and lifting of deep-sea cables.

Thomson (1824-1907) is considered to be the founder of British physics. He was a foremost figure in the world of nineteenth-century science, particularly in his active role in the application of theoretical physics and numerous contributions in the field of physical instrumentation.