The Autobiography of an Electron: Wherein the Scientific Ideas of the Present Time Are Explained in an Interesting and Novel FashionGibson, Charles R. (Charles Robert)
Science
The Autobiography of an Electron: Wherein the Scientific Ideas of the Present Time Are Explained in an Interesting and Novel Fashion
Gibson, Charles R. (Charles Robert)
Electricity; Electrons
The point concerning which I wish to speak in particular is this.
Although we allow the æther waves to pass through such substances, we do
offer some slight resistance to the passage of the waves; the faster the
to-and-fro motion of the waves, the more resistance do we offer. That
is why the waves of highest frequency are bent farthest from the
straight line when passed through a glass prism. We actually force the
æther waves to travel slower through a piece of glass than through the
air.
Now there should be no mystery concerning our action in a triangular
piece of glass. Whatever combination of æther waves falls upon it, the
different trains of waves are sorted out according to their frequencies.
Suppose, for instance, that æther waves emitted from some incandescent
sodium are passed through a glass prism. The bulk of the electrons
attached to the sodium atoms are capable of revolving at speeds which
produce waves causing the sensation of yellow. Hence there will appear a
very distinct line of yellow light in the spectrum. But why should the
light be in the form of a line? Simply because our æther waves are
passed through a narrow slit in a shutter. But I need not trouble you
with further details of our actions, which, although very simple to us,
may seem somewhat strange to you.
You will understand, however, that we form bright lines in different
parts of the spectrum, according to the kinds of atoms to which we are
attached. It was this fact which attracted man's attention to our
wireless messages. He soon discovered the meaning of these lines, for he
commenced to take exact notes of the different positions in which we
placed these lines. He saw that when we were attached to hydrogen atoms
we always produced three prominent lines; a very distinct line in the
red section, another in the blue part, and a third one somewhat fainter
and farther along in the blue. On the other hand, when attached to
sodium atoms, we produced two very distinct lines in the yellow. When
attached to iron atoms we produced a great variety of lines in the
spectrum. Of course these substances have to be incandescent to enable
us to produce the æther waves.
Now it will be clear to you how we send wireless messages from the
distant stars. These stars are great masses of flaming gases, so that
the satellite electrons are kept busy dancing attendance to excited
atoms. The electrons are constantly sending out æther waves, which reach
this planet. We sort out these waves when man passes them through a
glass prism, mounted in a telescope arrangement which he calls a
_spectroscope_. He then examines the positions of the lines we produce
in the resulting spectrum, and from these he knows what kinds of atoms
are present in the distant star. It is we who have informed man that
there are forty different materials in the sun, the most common of which
are hydrogen, sodium, iron, copper, nickel, and zinc. Of course these
all exist in a gaseous form.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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