Electricity from Pages For Sages

In the Eighteenth century, experimenters dealing with electricity were prone to receiving painful, and perhaps fatal, shocks from their experimental devices. This paper, read before the Royal Society on March 12, 1767, dealt with a proposed solution to the electrical shock problem. A "Description of an improved Apparatus for performing Electrical Experiments, in which the Electrical Power is increased, the… Read more about this item

The treatise by Abbe Nollet, Lettres sur Electricite, contained 284 pages, exclusive of the preface and four tables, and exhibiting fourteen figures, and dealt with the hypothesis that the effects of electricity depend upon the simultaneous affluence and effluence of the electric matter. This paper is intended to summarize the work described in the treatise in order to support and… Read more about this item

This item consists of two related papers. The first was written by Benjamin Wilson and transmits the second letter to the Secretary of the Royal Society. The second letter was written by Edward Delaval to describe his experiments, and their results, to investigate the electrical resistance of certain materials. The full title of this two-letter item is A Letter… Read more about this item

This paper, A Letter to Mr. Benjamin Wilson, F.R.S. concerning Electricity; from Mr. Thorbern Bergman is written in Latin and was first read before the Royal Society on November 20, 1760. The paper seems to discuss a correlation between electricity and the aurora borealis, although someone competent in Latin may find other meanings in the text. As an example, the… Read more about this item

Several studies of the effect of temperature on the electrical properties of materials were performed by Edward Delaval and are described in this paper. The item, first read before the Royal Society on December 17, 1761, is a First Edition, extracted and disbound from The Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, Vol. 52, For the Years 1761 & 1762, pages 353-356.… Read more about this item

This letter discusses experiments that studied the positively and negatively charged aspects of electricity. The item, first read before the Royal Society on November 14, 1754, is a First Edition, extracted and disbound from The Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, Vol. 48, For the Year 1753, pages 780-785, plus two extended plates showing figures supporting the text. This volume… Read more about this item

This paper describes the observations made using a large outdoor apparatus, in varying weather conditions, to determine the properties of electricity. The apparatus "which consisted of an iron wire 370 feet long, raised to 90 feet above the horizon. It came down from a very high room in the castle, where it was fastened to a silken cord six feet… Read more about this item

Mr. Watson, in this translation of the treatise, presents a thorough summary of the Abbe Nollet's most recent work which "…contains 262 pages in 12mo, exclusive of the preface, and four copper plates, representing seventeen figures…" Most of the work appears to be directed towards electricity in the clouds, lightning, thunder and the protection of structures from lightning damage. The… Read more about this item