Skip to content

Please be aware that some material may contain words, descriptions or illustrations which will not reflect current scientific understanding and may be considered in today's context inaccurate, unethical, offensive or distressing.

The Royal Society: Science in the Making

Unpublished paper, 'Further experiments on light' by Henry Peter Brougham

Reference number: AP/33/7

Date: 1852

Description

Brougham states that 'it is probable that some may consider the inference to be drawn from the following experiments as unfavourable to the doctrines of my former paper - I think I can explain the phenomena according to those doctrines - but be they ever so repugnant, we are of course in search of truth, and have no right even to wish that the balance may incline one way rather than another, far less to conceal any facts which may affect its inclination'. The leading experiment is this: a speculum is placed in a beam of light and is inclined so that the reflected rays make a small angle with the surfaces.

Includes three pages of figures relating to Brougham's experiments on light. Annotations in pencil throughout.

Subject: Physics / Optics

Received 5 January 1852.

Whilst the Royal Society declined to publish this paper in full, an abstract of the paper was published in volume 6 of Abstracts of the Papers Printed in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London [later Proceedings of the Royal Society] as 'Further experiments on light'.

Reference number
AP/33/7
Earliest possible date
1852
Physical description
Ink and graphite pencil on paper
Page extent
45 pages
Format
Drawing
Manuscript

Creator name

Henry Peter Brougham

View page for Henry Peter Brougham

Use this record

IIIF manifest

View​ IIIF ​ manifest Opens in new tab

Open in Mirador viewer Opens in new tab

Export this record

Download PDF Opens in new tab

Citation

Henry Peter Brougham, Unpublished paper, 'Further experiments on light' by Henry Peter Brougham, 1852, AP/33/7, The Royal Society Archives, London, https://makingscience.royalsociety.org/items/ap_33_7/unpublished-paper-further-experiments-on-light-by-henry-peter-brougham, accessed on 06 December 2024

Link to this record

https://makingscience.royalsociety.org/items/ap_33_7/unpublished-paper-further-experiments-on-light-by-henry-peter-brougham

Embed this record

<iframe src="https://makingscience.royalsociety.org/embed/items/ap_33_7/unpublished-paper-further-experiments-on-light-by-henry-peter-brougham" title="Unpublished paper, 'Further experiments on light' by Henry Peter Brougham" allow="fullscreen" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="500px"></iframe>

Related Publications

Related Records

Hierarchy

This item is part of:

Related Fellows

Explore the collection

  • Archived Papers

    Dates: 1768-1989

    The 'Archived Papers' collection is comprised of original manuscript scientific papers and letters submitted to the Royal Society which remained unpublished or were abstracted in the journal 'Proceedings of the Royal Society' published from 1830 onwards.

    View collection