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<\/p>\nSome old books get destroyed, some get outdated, some forgotten.\u00a0 I think in the context of physics textbooks, once they get outdated they have little value.\u00a0 Science is only valuable if it is the absolute truth.\u00a0 However, Thomas Young’s lectures have found a sweet middle ground.\u00a0 They are not at the foreground of scientific discovery, after all, it has been 200 years.\u00a0 However, they have certainly not been forgotten- and much of what he wrote is still valuable to the physics community.<\/p>\n
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While current academics may not hold the science in the textbook in the most venerable light, the book is a testament to the heart and passion of physicists everywhere.\u00a0 The first thing that points to this is the shear volume of the book.\u00a0 My word, what kind of person writes 1400 pages just about physics.\u00a0 It takes a level passion that is seen in almost no one.\u00a0\u00a0Secondly, after examining the condition of the book, it is clear that it has been cared about.\u00a0 The pages are not written on, damaged, ripped, or even torn or folded.\u00a0 That could be a sign of two things I guess.\u00a0 Either it simply was never used or looked at, or what I think is more likely, it was used and respected.\u00a0 After doing all this research on the book, the author, and the time in which it was produced it is clear that Thomas Young was kind of a big deal.\u00a0 He wasn’t Isaac Newton, but he was in the same circles working together to discover the nature of the world around them.<\/p>\n
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To my knowledge, this book has not been adapted or revised, but only republished in 1845.\u00a0 It was even digitized in 2011.\u00a0 I think this means that not only was it not necessary to be changed, but it is also probable that demand for it grew, causing them to republish it.\u00a0 Even today, it is available.\u00a0 I think it is curious, it is available in three different mediums. Well, sort of.\u00a0 One can buy an originally printed copy for around $3,000, a standard edition for $24 from Wal-Mart, or one can access the digital copy from archive.org.\u00a0 I believe this fact goes to show that it is still in demand, not only because of its value back then, but because of its functionality now.<\/p>\n
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While browsing around different digitized copies of the book, I discovered another interesting factoid.\u00a0 The edition that resides at University of California Berkeley has been checked out nearly 10 times since 1990.\u00a0 I am curious as to the nature of those lendings.\u00a0 Are students learning the physics inside the book, or studying strictly the book itself, like I am.\u00a0 Regardless, this speaks to the legacy of the book.\u00a0 Maybe its legacy is important for both reason.\u00a0 It is a scientifically important book, and a physical historic artifact.\u00a0 And that begs the question, when did it make the transition from a cutting-edge physics textbook to a piece of valued history.\u00a0 I think it is safe to say that it happened after its second publication in 1845.<\/p>\n
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To learn more about this, I did research with Colby College’s Special Collections librarians.\u00a0 From looking at the book stamp on the cover page we know Colby acquired the book before 1860.\u00a0 That really surprised me.\u00a0 There is a signature in the beginning of the book that reads Queens College Oxford, 1829.\u00a0 Now, we have to match that up with the fact that the book was republished in 1845.\u00a0 If Colby wanted the textbook, and it was after 1845, why would we get a used one from a student all the way in Oxford?\u00a0 I’m guessing that at some point between 1830 and 1850, this exact copy of the book made it over from England to Waterville College, not as a special or rare book, but as a physics textbook.\u00a0 From there I believe it lasted as a standard book until around 1939.\u00a0 Colby placed a dated stamp on the book dated May 22, 1939.\u00a0 While the Librarian cannot be positive as to what that is, I think it is not a bad bet to believe that was when Colby decided this was no longer a textbook, but a piece of history.<\/p>\n
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Citations:<\/p>\n
https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/courseoflectures02younrich<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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