V. KELVIN ON “LIGHT” AND “THE TIDES”
BY PROFESSOR W. M. DAVIS
SCIENTIFIC essays, like those by Lord Kelvin on Light〖Harvard Classics, xxx, 251ff.〗 and The Tides,〖H. C., xxx, 274ff.〗 should be read several times by the studious reader, and each time from a different point of view. In the first reading, the reader seeks for information offered by the author; in the second, the reader examines the scientific method by which the author has gained his information; in the third, the reader’s attention should be directed to the style of presentation adopted by the author in telling his story. After an attentive study of Kelvin’s essays from these different sides, many a reader will find that he has made a distinct intellectual advance.