Micrographia: Some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies Made by Magnifying Glasses with Observations and Inquiries ThereuponHooke, Robert
History
Micrographia: Some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies Made by Magnifying Glasses with Observations and Inquiries Thereupon
Hooke, Robert
Magnifying glasses -- Early works to 1800; Microscopy -- Early works to 1800; Natural history -- Pre-Linnean works
And indeed, this Plant of _Fearn_, if all particulars be well consider’d,
will seem of as simple, and uncompounded a form as any _Vegetable_, next to
_Mould_ or _Mushromes_, and would next after the invention of the forms of
those, deserve to be enquir’d into; for notwithstanding several have
affirm’d it to have seed, and to be propagated thereby; yet, though I have
made very diligent enquiry after that particular, I cannot find that there
is any part of it that can be imagin’d to be more seminal then another: But
this onely here by the by:
For the freezing Figures in _Urine_, I found it requisite,
First, that the Superficies be not disturbed with any wind, or other
commotion of the air, or the like.
Secondly, that it be not too long exposed, so as that the whole bulk be
frozen, for oftentimes, in such cases, by reason of the swelling the of
_Ice_, or from some other cause, the curious branched Figures disappear.
Thirdly, an artificial freezing with _Snow_ and _Salt_, apply’d to the
outside of the containing Vessel, succeeds not well, unless there be a very
little quantity in the Vessel.
Fourthly, If you take any cleer and smooth Glass, and wetting all the
inside of it with _Urine_, you expose it to a very sharp freezing, you will
find it cover’d with a very regular and curious Figure.
II.
_Observables in figur’d _Snow_._
Exposing a piece of black Cloth, or a black Hatt to the falling _Snow_, I
have often with great pleasure, observ’d such an infinite variety of
curiously figur’d _Snow_, that it would be as impossible to draw the Figure
and shape of every one of them, as to imitate exactly the curious and
Geometrical _Mechanisme_ of Nature in any one. Some coorse draughts, such
as the coldness of the weather, and the ill provisions, I had by me for
such a purpose, would permit me to make, I have here added in the Second
_Figure_ of the Eighth _Scheme_.[12]
In all which I observ’d, that if they were of any regular Figures, they
were always branched out with six principal branches, all of equal length,
shape and make, from the center, being each of them inclin’d to either of
the next branches on either side of it, by an angle of sixty degrees.
Now, as all these stems were for the most part in one flake exactly of the
same make, so were they in differing Figures of very differing ones; so
that in a very little time I have observ’d above an hundred several cizes
and shapes of these starry flakes.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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