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Unpublished paper, 'Is the diameter of the pupil of the eye an equivalent of the lights intensity?' by John Gorham

Reference number: AP/63/2

Date: 1884

Description

Gorham proposes to 'enquire whether the human eye is endowed with the power of measuring the varying intensities of lights which are admitted upon the retina.' He presents a series of experimental observations.

Includes one page of diagrams relating to Gorham's pupil photometer, and three tables showing experimental results.

Subject: Physiology

Received 18 November 1884. Read 27 November 1884. Communicated by [Samuel] Wilks.

Whilst the Royal Society declined to publish this paper in full, an abstract of the paper was published in volume 37 of the Proceedings of the Royal Society as 'The pupil-photometer'.

Reference number
AP/63/2
Earliest possible date
1884
Physical description
Ink on paper
Page extent
17 pages
Format
Manuscript
Diagram

Creator name

John Gorham

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

John Gorham, Unpublished paper, 'Is the diameter of the pupil of the eye an equivalent of the lights intensity?' by John Gorham, 1884, AP/63/2, The Royal Society Archives, London, https://makingscience.royalsociety.org/items/ap_63_2/unpublished-paper-is-the-diameter-of-the-pupil-of-the-eye-an-equivalent-of-the-lights-intensity-by-john-gorham, accessed on 14 May 2025

Link to this record

https://makingscience.royalsociety.org/items/ap_63_2/unpublished-paper-is-the-diameter-of-the-pupil-of-the-eye-an-equivalent-of-the-lights-intensity-by-john-gorham

Embed this record

<iframe src="https://makingscience.royalsociety.org/embed/items/ap_63_2/unpublished-paper-is-the-diameter-of-the-pupil-of-the-eye-an-equivalent-of-the-lights-intensity-by-john-gorham" title="Unpublished paper, 'Is the diameter of the pupil of the eye an equivalent of the lights intensity?' by John Gorham" allow="fullscreen" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="500px"></iframe>

Related Publications

Hierarchy

This item is part of:

Related Fellows

Explore the collection

  • Archived Papers

    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.

    Dates: 1768 - 1989

    View collection