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The Royal Society: Science in the Making

Copy of letter, from Sir John Herschel to Adam Sedgwick, dated at Collingwood

Reference number: HS/22/230

Date: 15 April 1845

Description

Copy of letter, copied as part of the correspondence project led by Colonel John Herschel FRS following the death of his father. [Robert Chambers's] Vestiges of Creation is shallow and full of errors. Tells Adam Sedgwick not to spare it when he reviews it. Discusses various topics including the nebular hypothesis, P. S. Laplace, central heat in gravitation, and the density of planets. Also, the 'nonsensical calculations' of Auguste Comte's astronomy.

Reference number
HS/22/230
Earliest possible date
15 April 1845
Page extent
4 pages
Format
Manuscript
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Creator name

John Frederick William Herschel

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Citation

John Frederick William Herschel, Copy of letter, from Sir John Herschel to Adam Sedgwick, dated at Collingwood, 15 April 1845, HS/22/230, The Royal Society Archives, London, https://makingscience.royalsociety.org/items/hs_22_230/copy-of-letter-from-sir-john-herschel-to-adam-sedgwick-dated-at-collingwood, accessed on 20 April 2025

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https://makingscience.royalsociety.org/items/hs_22_230/copy-of-letter-from-sir-john-herschel-to-adam-sedgwick-dated-at-collingwood

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  • Herschel Letters

    This collection of nearly 10,900 letters, drafts, copies and notes is the largest repository of scientific correspondence from and to Sir John Herschel, leading figure of Victorian science.

    Dates: 1807 - 1875

    View collection