The Nature of Light, with a General Account of Physical
Optics. By Dr. Eugene Lommol. (Henry S. King and Co.)—To those who take
an amateur interest in scientific pursuits, this book will be most ac- ceptable. The nature of light is one of absorbing interest, and accounts of the discoveries of Fraunhofer, Kirchhoff, Fresnel, Esselbach, and others read more like romances than scientific facts. After an explanation of the way rays of light conduct themselves when they impinge on mirrors, or are conveyed through transparent media, Dr. Lommol introduces the dispersion of light in a way at once novel and simple. He shows that the bands of coloured light which pass through a prism from the electric lamp have a different colour and position, according to the substance vaporised in the lamp, and proceeds to ex- plain the principle and operations of the spectroscope. The undulating theory of light is developed from Fresnel's experiment with the two mirrors, all previously mentioned phenomena are examined with reference to this, and the book closes with chapters on the "Interference and Polarisation of Light." Tho mathematical part of the subject is briefly treated in appendices. The text does not read like a trans- lation, and why we should be reminded that it is so, by German names following many words, is a mystery. Is there some particular merit in the translator using "focus" or "burning-point" for "Breunpunkt," or "reflectors" for "Revorberen"?
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