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London, Macmillian and Co, 1968. Royal8vo. Bound in contemporary full cloth with title to spine. In "Nature", Vol. 217, 1968. Library stamp to upper right corner of title page, otherwise a fine and clean copy. Pp. 709-13. [Entier volume: XL, 1298 pp.]. First printing of the discovery of pulsars. Hewish was in 1974 awarded the Nobel Prize in physics "for his decisive role in the discovery of pulsars"."Their discovery, reported in 1968, came as a complete surprise, and astonishingly their radio signals behave like the ticks of a super-accurate clock. The unique characteristics of pulsars have since been used to explore the behaviour of gravity, the nature of nuclear matter, the late evolutionary stages of massive stars, and the character of the interstellar medium". (A Century of Nature). "Antony Hewish had played a central role in the development of aperture synthesis and in 1964 began the study of the twinkling, or scintillation, of radio sources due to irregularities in the outflow of material from the Sun, what is known as the solar wind. A remarkable by-product of these studies was the discovery of pulsating radio sources, subsequently called pulsars, by Hewish and his graduate student, Jocelyn Bell. These objects were soon convincingly identified as rapidly rotating, magnetized neutrons stars, which had been predicted to exist on theoretical grounds. Their serendipitous discovery at long radio wavelengths was a crucial event for all astronomy." (DSB).

(Paris, Mallet-Bachelier), 1856. 4to. No wrappers. In: "Supplément aux Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des séances de l’Académie des sciences", Tome Premier. With half-title and title-page to Tome I. Pp. 379-563 and 9 engraved plates (4 handcoloured). A punched stamp to lower margin of title-page. Clean and fine. First printing of this celebrated memoir in which Bernard describes his importent invesigations on the function of the liver, the pancreas and the pancreatic juices."In 1846 Bernard began studying the pancreatic juices and their role in digestion,.... By observing the processes of digestion in dogs and rabbits, and by experimentation with pure pancreatic juices collected from temporary pancreatic fistulae, Bernard was able to show that pancreatic juices made fats absorbable by breaking them down into fatty acids and glycerine. In 1856 he published his most complete statement of the function of the pancreas, "Mémoire sur le pancréas et sur le role du suc pancréatique dans les phénomènes digestifs, particulièrement dans la digestion des matières grasses neutres." This appered in Volume I of the supplement to the "Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des séances de l’Académie des sciences", and it was also published as a separate edition in book form."(Norman p. 247).Norman "One Hundred Books Famous in Medicine", No 67 B. -

London, Knapton, Lintot..., 1753. Bound in 9 uniform contemp. full mottled calf. raised bands. Richly gilt spines. Titlelabels with gilt lettering. Covers occassionally very slightly rubbed. Engraved frontispiece. In all 24 engraved plates numbered I-XXIV. Title-pages printed in red and black. Internally clean, printed on good paper.

Kiøbenhavn, Brødrene Berling, 1772-73. 4to. Et lidt senere halvpergamentsbd. med forgyldt skindtitel på ryg. Lidt revnedannelse i forreste fals og en lille del af bagpermens øverste ydre hjørne bortbrækket. (6),630;8,(12),159,180,(2) pp. Med 1 genealogisk foldetabel, 4 plancher og 2 kobberstukne foldekort. Indvendig ren, trykt på skrivepapir. Originaludgaven. Værket er en selvstændig udgivele, men må ses som en fortdsættelse af Suhms serie om Nordens historie.

Stockholm, Kongl. Boktryckeriet, 1886. 4to. Orig. blank wrappers with printed title on top of frontwrapper. Wrapper a bit frayed. In: "Kongl. Svenska Vetenskaps-Akademiens Handlingar" Bd. 21, No. 17. Separately printed. 58 pp. First printing of this importent paper in the history of chemistry in which van't Hoff showed that dilute solutions follow the same mathematical properties describing gases.Hoff was awarded the first Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1901 for his discovery of the laws of chemical dynamics and osmotic pressure in solutions.

Grenoble, Joseph-Sulpice Grabit, 1771. Contemp. full calf. Raised bands, richly gilt compartments,titlelabel with guilt lettering. A stamp on htitle and titlepage. XVI,575 pp. and 2 large folded engraved plates. Internally fine and clean. Both covers with the royal coat-of-arms of the Danish king Christian 7. First French edition, translated from Robin's work "Mathematical Tracts... Vol. I. London 1761". It contains the authors New Principles of Gunnery together with some of his various mathematical tratises read before the Royal Society, his polemics on the "vis viva" etc. and Wilson's personal comments on the life and character of his old friend.

Coph., 1938-83.

London, William Nicholson, 1809. 8vo. Contemp. hcalf, but spine lacks, boards loose. In: "A Journal of Natural Philosophy, Chemistry, and the Arts. By William Nicholson." Vol. XXII. - VIII,384,(8) pp. a. 10 engraved plates. Youngs paper: pp. 104-124. Small stamps to verso of titlepage. Internally fine and clean. First appearance (together with the paper in the "Transactions of the Royal Society at the same time) of this famous paper, containing Young's implicit discovery of the Joukowski equation for solids, 100 years before it appeared under the name of Joukowski (1847-1921), the well-known pioneer in the theory of aerodynamics.

4to. 2 cont. full calf. 5 raised bands. Gilt back. Top of spines a little worn. Extremities a little rubbed. One titlelabel torn. Engraved frontispiece, engr. titlevign. (34),756,575 pp. + Index. printed on good paper.

Kiöbenhavn, Johan Frederik Schultz, 1789. 4to. Samt. helldrbd. m. ophøjede bd. på ryg og rig rygforgyldn. Forgyldt skindtitel. Mindre revnedannelse på false ved øverste kapitæl. Lidt marginale spredte brunpletter. Eksemplar på skrivepapir med brede marginer. 16 kobberstukne plancher af Clemens, de 15 efter Abildgaard og Niels Klim som drabant efter Juel. Godt eksemplar af den såkaldte "Pragtudgave", "et af det 18. Aarhundredes bedste bogværker" (Birkelund nr. 182).

London, John Bartlet, 1632. 8vo. In contemporary full calf with four raised bands. Small paper label pasted on to top of spine (indicating the inventory number in a estate library). Upper capital lacking part of leather. Internally with occassional underlignings and marginal annotations in contemporary hand. A bit of marginal miscolouring throughout. Hole in inner margin of pp. 299-322, far from affecting text. A good copy. (6), 322, 186, (10), 68, 196 pp. The uncommon second edition of Harris' sermons on happiness and Ezechiel.

Birmingham, Baskerville, 1772. 4to. Bound in a somewhat worn contemporary full calf binding with richly gilt spine. Five raised bands and gilt title label to spine. Edges of boards gilt. Cracks to upper and lower outer hinges. Slight loss to capitals. Tears to edges and corners. Internally clean. (2),280 pp. Baskerville's magnificent quarto edition of Lucretius' (ca. 99-55) 'De rerum natura'.

Paris, Mad. Ve Barnard, 1809. Contemp. hcalf. Spine gilt. Wear to top of spine. A few scratches to binding. Small stamps on verso of titlepage.In: "Annales de Chimie, ou Recueil de Mémoires concernant la Chemie" Tome 70. 336 pp. (Entire volume offered). Davy's paper: pp. 189-254. First edition in French (the first English 1808) of this importent historical paper in chemistry, in which Davy shows that electricity is capable of decomposing some alkalies, isolating two new substances and discovering potassium and sodium. Neville in his Historical Chemical Library vol. I, p.340, writes about this paper "ONE OF THE GREAT CLASSIC RESEARCHES IN CHEMISTRY, in which Davy announced in this, his second Bakterian lecture, the isloation of metallic potassium and sodium by the electrolytic decomposition of their fused oxides.""He (Davy) began his own electrical experiments...The results were spectacular. On October 6, 1807, the current passing through molten potash liberated a metal, which Davy called potassium. The little globules of shining metal tore the water molecule apart as it eagerly recombined with oxygen and the liberated hydrogen burst into lavender flame. Davy danced about in a delirium of joy. A week later he isolated sodium from soda."(Asimow). The paper offered here describes these discoveries."Humphry Davy was one of the most brilliant chemists of the early nineteenth century. His early study of nitrous oxide brought him his first reputation, but his later and most importent investigations were devoted to electrochemistry. Following Galvani's experiments and the discovery of the voltaic pile, interest in galvanic electricity had become widespread. The first electrolysis by means of the pile was carried out in 1800 by Nicholson and Carisle, who obtained oxygen and hydrogen from water. Davy began to examine the chemical effects of electricity in 1800, and his numerous discoveries were presented in his Bakerian lecture to the Royal Society on November 20, 1806. (A Source Book in Chemistry p. 243).

(London, Taylor and Francis, 1864). 4to. No wrappers as extracted from "Philosophical Transactions", Vol. 154 - Part II, pp. 413-435 a. pp. 437-444 and 2 lithographed plates.(1 plate showing the spectroscope which could be attached to his eight-innch telescope invented by Huggin's and Miller, the start of stellar spectroscopi, the other plate showing the obtained spectra of the nebulæ Aldebaran and Orionis). First printing of a historical paper in spectroscopy and cosmology in which the authors shows, by analysing the spectrae of nebulae, of stars, of planets, of comets, and of the sun, that they are all built of the same elements as the earth. Thus was "laid to rest the twenty-one-century notion of Aristotle's that the heavens were composed of a unique substance not found on the earth."(Asimov). They also shows that there is a considerable diversity of chemical composition among the stars.In this paper Huggins also describes his discovery, by spectroscopy, that a number of nebulae are luminous gas clouds."William Huggins (1824-1910), English astronomer, a pioneer in spectroscopy and photography. He examined spectroscopically the chemical constitution of stars and comets, and the gaseous nature of planetary and diffuse nebulae; he applied the Doppler Principle to the measurement of the radial velocities of stars, and published an atlas of representative stellar spectra" (Ripley: Source Book in Astronomy).

Havre et Paris, Faure, Béchet, 1822. Later hcloth. Gilt lettering on spine. Stamp on title-page. XII,478,(2) pp., 23 folded lithographed maps and 7 folded lithographed plates with 82 coastal profiles. Internally clean and fine.

Leipzig, S. Hirzel, 1917. Royal8vo. Bound in contemporary half calf with gilt lettering to spine and 5 raised bands with ornaments in gilt. In "Physikalische Zeitschrift", Bd. 18, 1917. Spine and hinges with wear, otherwise a fine and clean copy. Pp. 121-128. [Entire volume: XI, (1), 604 pp. + 14 plates. The paper was first published in 1916 in Mitteilungen der Physikalischen Gesellschaft in Zürich, but here for the first time in Physikalische Zeitschrift. All subsequent research on absorption and emission of radiation and the entire discovery of the maser, later the laser, was based on the research presented in the present paper. The paper is also notable for introducing the concept (but not the name) of the photon; Einstein argues that in the interaction of matter and radiation there must be, in addition to the processes of absorption and spontaneous emission, a third process of stimulated emission. If stimulated emission exists then he can derive the Planck distribution for blackbody radiation and without it the same argument implies the invalid Wien-distribution theory."In this paper he derived Planck's original quantum law from a different starting point, he suggested that as well as spontaneous emission and absorption, there could also take place the process of stimulated emission. In 1917 this seemed mainly of theoretical interest; forty years later it was utilized to provide the maser and laser of modern technology. In 1916, "Einstein came back once more to blackbody radiation and made further progress. In November 1916 he wrote to Besso: 'A splendid light has fallen on me about the absorption and emission of radiation'. His reasoning is divided into three papers, two of which appeared in 1916 and the third one early in 1917 [the two papers above - note that these are the two papers of Einstein on radiation theory cited by Weil as "principal works"; a third paper from 1916 is not.] In these papers, Einstein proposed a statistical theory of the interaction between atoms and photons, gave a new demonstration of Planck's radiation theory and introduced the concept of 'stimulated emission', providing the basis for the discovery of masers and lasers " (Bertolotti, The History of the Laser)."When Einstein returned to the radiation problem in 1916, the quantum theory had undergone a major change. Niels Bohr's papers had opened a new and fertile domain for the application of quantum concepts-the explanation of atomic structure and atomic spectra. In addition Bohr's work and its generalizations by Arnold Sommerfeld and others constituted a fresh approach to the foundations of the quantum theory of matter. Einstein's new work showed the influence of these ideas . He had found still another derivation of Planck's black-body radiation law, an "astonishingly simple and general" one which, he thought, mightproperly be called "the derivation" 12 of this important law. It was based on statistical assumptions about the processes of absorption and emission of radiation and on Bohr's basic quantum hypothesis that atomic systems have a discrete set of possible stationary states. The proof turned on the requirement that absorption and emission of radiation, both spontaneous and stimulated, suffice to keep a gas of atoms in thermodynamic equilibrium. (This paper introduced the concept of stimulated emission into the quantum theory and is therefore often described as the basis of laser physics.) Einstein himself considered the most important contribution of this work to be not the new derivation of the distribution law but rather the arguments he presented for the directional character of energy quanta. (DSB) Weil No 91 (with an asterix denoting major paper).

London, Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1861. Folio. 2 contemp. hcalf. Spines gilt. Titlelabels with gilt lettering. (8),LI,228;(24),692 pp., 3 folded maps (Index-map with colouring), 2 diagrams, 5 plates. Textdiagrams, textillustrations in woodcut. Clean and fine.

London, Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner, 1893-96. 4to. Orig. clothbacked boards. Vol. I in reprint from 1975. (XII,77;VIII,85;IV,42 pp. and 40+39+10 plates (10 in colour). (Publications of the Archaeological Survey of Egypt. Edited by F.Ll. Griffith. 1.,2. and 5. Memoir).

Kbhvn., L.C. Simmelkiær, 1777. 8vo. Samt. helldrbd. med rygforgyldning. Titel-og tomefelter i skind på ryggen. Kapitæler slidte, ligeledes kanter og hjørner. (48),799,(1) pp. samt 1 stor foldet kobberstukket planche med 7 figurer. Her og der nogle understregninger i teksten. Inclusiv subskribentliste. Originaludgaven af Fleischers stort anlagte håndbog i biavl, lægger som den første vægt på den "vilde" biavl fra skovene, og behandler således for første gang også de specielle norske forhold for avlen. - Bibl. Danica II:295.

Paris, Gauthier-Villars, 1880. 4to. No wrappers. In: "Comptes Rendus Hebdomadaires des Séances de L'Academie des Sciences", Tome 91, No 5 (entire issue offered). Pp. 251-310. The Curie's paper: pp. 294-295. First apperance of the paper in which the two brothers announced their discovery of the Piezoelectric Effect, as they observed how an electric potential appeared across crystals of quartza and of Rochelle salt when pressure was applied to them. The potential varied directly with the pressure, and they named the phenomenon Piezoelectricity, meaning "to press" (Greek). Crystals with piezoelectric properties form an essential portion of sound-electronics devices such as microphones and record-players."The applications of piezoelectric crystals are innumerable; one of the most important is their use in frequency stabilization of oscillating electromagnetic cirasciots for radio broadcasting stations. They are used in most piezometers for measuring with great precision either very strong pressure variations, such as those of a cannon at the moment of firing, or very weak ones, such as artery pulsations. These applications have led to the creation of a new industry, the manufacture of large "mono" such as quartz obtained hydrothermally around 500°C. under high water pressures, or crystals such as Rochelle salt, obtained from aqueous solutions. These two substances were mentioned in the Curie brothers’ report announcing the discovery of piezoelectricity." (DSB)."The first experimental demonstration of a connection between macroscopic piezoelectric phenomena and crystallographic structure was published in 1880 by Pierre and Jacques Curie. Their experiment consisted of a conclusive measurement of surface charges appearing on specially prepared crystals (tourmaline, quartz, topaz, cane sugar and Rochelle salt among them) which were subjected to mechanical stress. These results were a credit to the Curies' imagination and perseverance, considering that they were obtained with nothing more than tinfoil, glue, wire, magnets and a jeweler's saw." (Piezo Systems, Inc.).Magee "A Source Book in Physics", p. 547 ff.

Providence, Rhode Island, The American Mathematical Society, 1969. Royal8vo. In the original blue printed wrappers. In "Transactions of the American Mathematical Society", Volume 141, July, 1969. Entire issue offered. Spine faded and a few bumps to extremities, otherwise fine and clean. Pp. 1-35. [Entire volume: (4), 527 pp.]. First printing of Rabin's landmark paper in which he introduced his infinite tree automaton; a state machine that deals with infinite tree structure. It can be viewed as an extension from a finite tree automaton, which accepts only finite tree structures. Here he proved that the second-order theory of n successors is decidable; A key component of the proof implicitly showed determinacy of parity games, which lie in the third level of the Borel hierarchy.It was used by Rabin for proving decidability of monadic second order logic. It has been further observed that tree automaton and logical theories are closely connected and it allows decision problems in logic to be reduced into decision problems for automaton.

Leipzig, Johann Ambrosius Barth, 1885. 8vo. Contemporary half calf. 5 raised bands, gilt spine and gilt lettering to spine. A few scratches to spine. Small stamp on half title, title page and verso of title page. In: "Annalen der Physik und Chemie", Band. XXV. VIII, 680 pp. + 4 large folded plates all with a small stamp.Balmer's paper: pp. 80-87. Internally fine and clean. First edition of Balmer's seminal paper on spectral lines of the hydrogen atom which today is known as Balmer series, the first discovery of a mathematical relationsship between the frequencies of atomic spectral lines. Balmer's discovery was the decisive factor in Bohr's famous and groundbreaking discovery and description of his model of atomic structure published in 1913. "As soon as I saw Balmer's formula, the whole thing was immediately clear to me" Bohr told Leon Rosenfeld in an interview. (Heilbron, Historical studies in the theory of atomic structure, p. 265).The discovery that sets of lines in the spectra of alkalis and alkaline earth are related in series was discovered by G. D. Liveing in 1879 but Balmer discovered a simple formula (presented in the present paper) how to relate the wavelength of a series of line in the visible spectrum of hydrogen. The Balmer series was far from similar to the more simple ratio proposed by George Stoney. Although Balmers fomular linked together the four then known hydrogen spectra and turned out to by applicable for the ultraviolet and infrared spectra of hydrogen a complete understandig of the relations came first with Bohr in 1913."What Balmer did is slightly incredible. Having at his disposal four frequencies measured by Åndgtröm, he fitted them with a mathematical expression that predicts an infinity of lines - and his formula is in fact correct! Balmer's formula has stood the test of time as more hydrogen lines kept being discovered. Soon his results became widely known; they were quoted in the 1912 edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica. For nearly thirty years no one knew, however, what the formula was trying to say - then Bohr came along." (Pais. Niels Bohr's Times, pp. 142-3).Due to the relatively large occurrences of hydrogen in the universe the Balmer lines are useful in astronomy since the spectral classification of stars, which is primarily a determination of surface temperature, is based on the relative strength of spectral lines.(Appeared simultaneously in Verhandlungen der Naturforschenden Gesellschaft in Basel, Vol. 7, 1885, pp. 548-556, 750-752).Other papers of interest contained in the present volume:Lorenz, L. Bestimmung der electrischen Widerstände von Quecksilbersäulen in absolutem electromagnetischen Maasse. Pp. 1-31.Kirchhoff, G. Ueber einige Anwendungen der Theorie der Formänderung, welche ein Körper erfährt, wenn er magnetisch oder diëlectrisch polarisirt wird. Pp. 601-617.And many other.

Dresden u. Leipzig, Waltherischen Buchhandlung, 1756-69. Bound in 12 contemp. full calf. Richly gilt spines. Titlelabels with gilt lettering. 4 top of spines taped. Light wear to top of spines. A label taped to lower compartments. Spines a bit rubbed. With 2 folded engraved maps.

Braunschweig, Grubers, 1696 (+) Wittenberg, Quenstedt, 1698 (+) Franckfurt am Mayn, Sand, 1715. 8vo. In contemporary full calf with four raised bands. Small paper-label pasted on to upper part of spine. Wear to extremities, a few scratches and wormholes to boards. Occassionally slightly browned, repairs to title-page of the first work. (14), 598, (6), 316, 52, (12), (16), 503 pp. + frontispiece. Interesting sammelband containing three rare religious works all reflecting the Lutheran emphasis on faith and Biblical understanding. “Geistliche Kauffmannschafft”, a collection of catechetical sermons by Botsac (1649 – 1709), we have not been able to trace a single copy in the trade. “Verlohrnes und wiedergefundenes”, fourth edition, a detailed exegesis and homiletic application of the Parable of the Prodigal Son by Johann Heinrich Majus (1653–1719). “Das Güldene Kleinod Davids”, a verse-by-verse exposition of specific Psalms attributed to David, also by by Johann Heinrich Majus.

Paris, Crochard, 1831. No wrappers. In: "Annales de Chimie et de Physique, Par MM. Gay-Lussac et Arago.", tome 46, Cahier 3. Titlepage to vol. 46. Pp. 225-336 a. 1 folded engraved plate. (The entire issue offered). Fresnel's paper: pp. 225-264. Fist printing of this importent paper in which Fresnel formulates a theory of reflection and refraction referring them to the dynamical properties of the luminiferous media and stating the two laws that bears his name, the "Sine-law" and the "Tangent-law".This memoir was for some time considered lost, it was presented to the Academy in 1823, but found later in the papers of Fourier. "Ce Mémoire, qu'on ecroyait égaré, vient d'étre retrouvé dans les papiers de M. Fourier. Comme il n'est connu que par des extraits tout-è-fait insuffisand (voyez Ann.. t. XXIX, p. 175), nous nous empressons d'en enrichir les Annales."(Editor's footnote).In the memoir "He adopts Young's principle, that reflection and refraction are due to differences in the inertia of the aether in different material bodies, and supposes (as in the memoir on aberration) that the inertia is proportional to the inverse square of the velocity of propagation of light in the medium. The conditions which he proposes to satisfy at the interface between two media are that the displacements of the aadjacent molecules, resolved parallell to this interface, shall be equal in the two media; and that the energy of the reflwected and refracted waves together shall be equal to that of the incident wave."(Whittaker "A History of the Theories of Aether and Electricity" I, p.123).