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AETHER AND GRAVITATION AETHER AND GRAVITATION BY WILLIAM GEORGE HOOPER, F.S.S. LONDON CHAPMAN AND HALL, LTD. 1903 INTRODUCTORY NOTES The author in this work endeavours to solve the greatest scientific problem that has puzzled scientists for the past two hundred years. The question has arisen over and over again, since the discovery of universal gravitation by Sir Isaac Newton, as to what is the physical cause of the attraction of gravitation. “Action at a distance” has long ceased to be recognized as a possible phenomenon, although up to the present, the medium and method of gravitational attraction have not yet been discovered. It is, however, generally accepted by scientists, that the only possible medium which can give rise to the phenomena incidental to, and associated with the Law of Gravitation, must be the universal aether, which forms the common medium of all phenomena associated with light, heat, electricity and magnetism. It is impossible, however, to reconcile gravitational phenomena with the present conception of the universal aether medium, and a new theory is therefore demanded, before the long-sought-for explanation will be forthcoming. Professor Glazebrook definitely states the necessity for a new theory in his work on J. C. Maxwell, page 221, where he writes: “We are waiting for some one to give us a theory of the aether, which shall include the facts of electricity and magnetism, luminous radiation, and it may be gravitation.” A new theory of the aether is also demanded in view of the recent experimental results of Professor Lebedew, and Nichols and Hull of America. It is logically impossible to reconcile a frictionless aether, with their results relative to the pressure of light waves. In the following pages of this work the author has endeavoured to perfect a theory, which will bring aetherial physics more into harmony with modern observation and experiments; and by so doing, believes that he has found the key that will unlock the problem not only of the cause of universal gravitation, but also other problems of physical science. The author has taken Newton's Rules of Philosophy as his guide in the making of the new theory, as he believes that if any man knew anything of the rules of Philosophy, that man was Sir Isaac Newton. The first chapter therefore deals with the generally recognized rules which govern philosophical reasoning, the same being three in number; the fundamental rule being, that in making any hypothesis, the results of experience as obtained by observation and experiments must not be violated. In applying the rules to the present theory of the aether, he found that the theory as at present recognized violated two of the most important rules of Philosophy, because, while aether is supposed to be matter, yet it failed to fulfil the primary property of all matter, that is, it is not subject to the Law of Gravitation. If aether is matter, then, to be strictly logical and philosophical, it must possess the properties of matter as revealed by observation and experiment. Those properties are given in Chapter III., where it is shown that they are atomicity, heaviness or weight, elasticity, density, inertia, and compressibility. To be strictly logical and philosophical, the author was compelled to postulate similar properties for the aether, or else his hypotheses would contravert the results of all experience. The application of these properties to the aether will be found in Chapter IV., where the author has postulated atomicity, heaviness or weight, density, elasticity, inertia, and compressibility for the aether, and so brought the theory of the aether into perfect harmony with all observation and experiments relative to ordinary matter. It will be shown that Clerk Maxwell also definitely affirms the atomicity of the aether, while Tyndall and Huyghens also use the term “particles of aether” over and over again. Moreover, in view of the most recent researches in electricity made by Sir William Crookes and Professor J. J. Thomson, we are compelled to accept an atomic basis for electricity, and as Dr. Lodge, in his Modern Views of Electricity, states that “Aether is made up of positive and negative electricity,” then, unless we postulate atomicity for the aether, we have to suppose that it is possible for a non-atomic body (aether) to be made up of atoms or corpuscles, which conclusion is absurd, and therefore must be rejected as illogical and unphilosophical. After postulating atomicity for the aether, we are then able to apply the Newtonian Law of Gravitation to it, which distinctly affirms that “every particle of matter attracts every other particle,” and so we arrive at Thomas Young's fourth hypothesis given in the Philosophical Transactions of 1802, where he asserts that “All material bodies have an attraction for the aetherial medium, by means of which it is accumulated within their substance, and for a small distance around them in a state of greater density.” He adds the significant remark that this hypothesis is opposed to that of Newton's. With an atomic and gravitative aether it is shown in Chapter IV. how the elasticity, density, and inertia of the medium are brought into harmony with all observation and experiments. In the succeeding chapters the new theory is applied to the phenomena of heat, light, electricity, and magnetism, and the principles enunciated therein are then applied to solar and stellar phenomena. One of the greatest stumbling-blocks to the discovery of the physical cause of gravitation, apart from the unphilosophical theory of the aether medium, lies in the fact that apparently the Law of Gravitation only recognizes a force of one kind. Dr. Lodge refers to this phase of the subject on page 39 of his Modern Views of Matter just published. It is here where scientists have failed to solve the problem of universal gravitation, as there are two forces at work in the solar system and not one; that is, if we are to accept the results of up-to-date experiments in relation to radiant light and heat as performed by Professor Lebedew, and Nichols and Hull of America. Their experiments conclusively prove that light waves exert a pressure upon all bodies on which they fall, and by no reasoning can this pressure be resolved into an attractive force. Herschel in his Lectures on Scientific Subjects definitely refers to the existence of a repulsive force in the solar system, and asserts that it offers the most interesting prospect of any future discovery. The author has therefore attacked the problem of the cause of gravitation, by trying to solve the problem of the cause of therepulsive force which has been experimentally demonstrated to exist by Professor Lebedew and others. In his efforts to ascertain the physical cause of the Centrifugal Force, he has been assisted by an unknown and original essay written by an unknown writer over twenty years ago. That unknown writer was the author's father, who wrote an essay on theComplementary Law of Gravitation, and if it had not been for that essay, the present work would never have been attempted. The main object of the author in Chapters VI., VII., and VIII., is to prove beyond the possibility of contradiction, from the phenomena of heat, light, and electricity, the existence of two forces in the solar system; and by so doing, to bring our philosophy of the aether medium, and all gravitational phenomena, into harmony with all observation and experiments, which at present is not the case. In seeking to do this he found that the new theory of the aether harmonized with views given, by Faraday and Clerk Maxwell in relation to electric and magnetic phenomena, and by the new theory Maxwell's hypothesis of “Physical Lines of Force” receives a definite and physical basis. In Chapter X. the author endeavours to show what the Electro-Kinetic energy is, which term is used by Clerk Maxwell, the term being brought for the first time into harmony with our experience. The Electro-Magnetic Theory of Light also receives fresh light from the new theory of an atomic and gravitating aether. In the succeeding chapters the theory is applied to Newton's Laws of Motion and Kepler's Laws, and is found to harmonize with all the results given by these laws. Such a result is a distinct advance on the application of a frictionless aether to solar and stellar phenomena, as it is impossible for Kepler's Laws to be reconciled in any way with our present theory of the aether. In the concluding chapter on the unity of the universe, certain views are suggested as to the ultimate constitution of all matter, upon an aetherial basis, which hypothesis practically resolves itself into an electric basis for all matter. It is suggested that aether and electricity are one and the same medium, both being a form of matter, and both possessing exactly the same properties, viz. atomicity, weight, density, elasticity, inertia, and compressibility. This view of matter harmonizes with the most “Modern Views of Matter” as suggested by Sir Oliver Lodge in his Romanes Lecture 1903. The author has accepted Newton's way of spelling “aether” as given in his work on Optics, and has given “aetherial” the same suffix as “material,” in order to differentiate the word from “ethereal,” which is too metaphysical a term for a material medium. Nottingham, Sept. 1903. CONTENTS CHAPTER I PHILOSOPHY OF GRAVITATION ART. 1. GRAVITATION " 2. CAUSE OF GRAVITATION " 3. NEWTON'S RULES OF PHILOSOPHY " 4. FIRST RULE OF PHILOSOPHY " 5. SECOND RULE OF PHILOSOPHY " 6. THIRD RULE OF PHILOSOPHY " 7. APPLICATION OF RULES TO GRAVITATION " 8. ANALYSIS OF LAW OF GRAVITATION " 9. PRIMITIVE IMPULSE " 10. CENTRIPETAL FORCE " 11. CENTRIFUGAL FORCE " 12. NEWTON'S LAWS OF MOTION " 13. FORCE " 14. FIRST LAW OF MOTION " 15. SECOND LAW OF MOTION " 16. THIRD LAW OF MOTION " 17. SUMMARY OF CHAPTER CHAPTER II PHILOSOPHY OF GRAVITATION (continued) ART. 18. GRAVITATION ATTRACTION " 19. UNIVERSALITY OF GRAVITATION " 20. DIRECTION OF THE FORCES " 21. PROPORTION OF THE FORCES " 22. LAW OF INVERSE SQUARES " 23. TERRESTRIAL GRAVITY " 24. CENTRIFUGAL FORCE " 25. KEPLER'S LAWS " 26. FIRST LAW OF KEPLER " 27. SECOND LAW OF KEPLER " 28. THIRD LAW OF KEPLER CHAPTER III MATTER ART. 29. WHAT IS MATTER? " 30. CONSERVATION OF MATTER " 31. MATTER IS ATOMIC " 32. WHAT IS AN ATOM? " 33. THE ATOMIC THEORY " 34. KINDS OF ATOMS " 35. ELEMENTS OF MATTER " 36. THREE KINDS OF MATTER " 37. MATTER IS GRAVITATIVE " 38. MATTER POSSESSES DENSITY " 39. MATTER POSSESSES ELASTICITY " 40. MATTER POSSESSES INERTIA CHAPTER IV AETHER ART. 42. AETHER IS MATTER " 43. AETHER IS UNIVERSAL " 44. AETHER IS ATOMIC " 45. AETHER IS GRAVITATIVE " 46. AETHER POSSESSES DENSITY " 47. AETHER POSSESSES ELASTICITY " 48. AETHER POSSESSES INERTIA " 49. AETHER IS IMPRESSIBLE " 50. AETHER AND ITS MOTIONS CHAPTER V ENERGY ART. 51. ENERGY " 52. CONSERVATION OF ENERGY " 53. TRANSFORMATION OF ENERGY " 54. POTENTIAL ENERGY [...]... MOTION ART 96 AETHER AND CENTRIFUGAL FORCE " 97 AETHER AND CENTRIPETAL FORCE " 98 AETHER AND NEWTON'S FIRST LAW OF MOTION " 99 AETHER AND NEWTON'S SECOND LAW OF MOTION " 100 AETHER AND NEWTON'S THIRD LAW OF MOTION " 101 WHY PLANETS REVOLVE FROM WEST TO EAST CHAPTER XI AETHER AND KEPLER'S LAWS ART 102 AETHER AND KEPLER'S FIRST LAW " 103 AETHER AND KEPLER'S SECOND LAW " 104 AETHER AND KEPLER'S THIRD LAW... SUN AND KEPLER'S FIRST LAW " 108 THE SUN AND KEPLER'S SECOND LAW " 109 AETHER AND THE PLANE OF THE ECLIPTIC " 110 AETHER AND THE CENTRIPETAL FORCE CHAPTER XII AETHER AND COMETS ART 111 WHAT IS A COMET? " 112 ORBITS OF COMETS " 113 KINDS OF COMETS " 114 PARTS OF A COMET " 115 CENTRIFUGAL FORCE AND COMETS " 116 FORMATION OF TAILS CHAPTER XIII AETHER AND STARRY WORLD ART 117 STARRY WORLD " 118 STARS AND. .. AND KEPLER'S LAWS " 119 AETHER AND NEBULAE " 120 WHAT IS A NEBULA? " 121 AETHER AND NEBULAR HYPOTHESIS " 122 KINDS OF NEBULAE CHAPTER XIV AETHER AND THE UNIVERSE ART 123 THE UNIVERSE " 124 UNITY OF THE UNIVERSE " 125 CONSTITUTION OF MATTER " 126 QUOD ERAT FACIENDUM " 127 GOD AND THE UNIVERSE APPENDIX INDEX [1] AETHER AND GRAVITATION CHAPTER I PHILOSOPHY OF GRAVITATION ART 1 Gravitation. In the realm... operations and influences, a one-sided force, ever tending and influencing towards self, and therefore by itself would only be a detriment and an evil; and, unless it were accompanied by some companion or complementary and counter force, with which it acts in union and concert, and which exactly counteracts its pulling power and influence, it would soon draw star to star, and world to world, crashing and. .. millions of stars, and[ 11] suns, flooding immensity and space with their light and heat Now the question I wish to ask regarding Primitive Impulse in relation to all these stars is this: “Was the Primitive Impulse imparted to each sun, and star, and planet, separately and distinctly?” If so, then there must have been just as many Primitive Impulses as there are stars and suns and planets, and there would... to the more complex and intricate, ultimately producing that wondrous and beauteous order, unity and harmony that everywhere pervade and blend all the universe into one grand and harmonious whole That Law I need hardly say is the Law of Gravitation ART 2 Cause of Gravitation. Now the question arises, and indeed has arisen a thousand times since the discovery of this law by Sir Isaac Newton over two... their transmission, why not another force, as for example Gravitation? Gravitation is an universal force which operates throughout the length and breadth of the entire universe, and if there be a medium which is to Gravitation, what the Aether is to light and heat, the question at once confronts us, as to what are the characteristics, properties, and qualities of that universal medium, which is to form... explanation of the cause and working of Gravitation, and to show how, by the properties, qualities and motions of the universal Aether, Universal Gravitation may be accounted for on a physical basis So that every phenomenon, associated with, or included in the Law of Gravitation, should receive a satisfactory physical explanation by the proposed theory Thus the physical cause of the centripetal and centrifugal... nothing to do, and of it nothing to say I am dealing, and only wish to deal, with scientific facts, and scientific teaching from the purely philosophical standpoint Such an idea of a continuing effect, without a continuing cause, is altogether opposed to experience and observation, and is a violation of the second Rule of Philosophy Look where we will, or at what we will, and not only effects and causes... the Law of Gravitation explains from a mathematical standpoint, ought to receive a physical explanation by the proposed new conception of the Aether medium In addition to the outstanding physical cause of Gravitation, there are other physical problems that yet remain to be solved; as, for example, there is the question as to what is the relative motion of Aether to moving matter Does the Aether move . AETHER AND GRAVITATION AETHER AND GRAVITATION BY WILLIAM GEORGE HOOPER, F.S.S. LONDON CHAPMAN AND HALL, LTD. 1903. CHAPTER IV AETHER ART. 42. AETHER IS MATTER " 43. AETHER IS UNIVERSAL " 44. AETHER IS ATOMIC " 45. AETHER IS GRAVITATIVE " 46. AETHER