Sunday 19 August 1666
(Lord’s day). Up and to my chamber, and there began to draw out fair and methodically my accounts of Tangier, in order to shew them to the Lords. But by and by comes by agreement Mr. Reeves, and after him Mr. Spong, and all day with them, both before and after dinner, till ten o’clock at night, upon opticke enquiries, he bringing me a frame he closes on, to see how the rays of light do cut one another, and in a darke room with smoake, which is very pretty. He did also bring a lanthorne with pictures in glasse, to make strange things appear on a wall, very pretty. We did also at night see Jupiter and his girdle and satellites, very fine, with my twelve-foote glasse, but could not Saturne, he being very dark. Spong and I had also several fine discourses upon the globes this afternoon, particularly why the fixed stars do not rise and set at the same houre all the yeare long, which he could not demonstrate, nor I neither, the reason of. So, it being late, after supper they away home.
But it vexed me to understand no more from Reeves and his glasses touching the nature and reason of the several refractions of the several figured glasses, he understanding the acting part, but not one bit the theory, nor can make any body understand it, which is a strange dullness, methinks.
I did not hear anything yesterday or at all to confirm either Sir Thos. Allen’s news of the 10 or 12 ships taken, nor of the disorder at Amsterdam upon the news of the burning of the ships, that he [De Witt] should be fled to the Prince of Orange, it being generally believed that he was gone to France before.
27 Annotations
First Reading
Terry Foreman • Link
"But it vexed me to understand no more from Reeves and his glasses touching the nature and reason of the several refractions of the several figured glasses, he understanding the acting part, but not one bit the theory, nor can make any body understand it, which is a strange dullness, methinks."
Why "a strange dullness"? I use a machine as I type, but know not how it works (what little HTML I know hardly suffices).
cgs • Link
Hollywood any one"...He did also bring a lanthorne with pictures in glasse, to make strange things appear on a wall, very pretty..."
cgs • Link
"...see Jupiter and his girdle and satellites, very fine, with my twelve-foote glasse..."
wiki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupi…
Nasa
http://www.nasa.gov/worldbook/jup…
cgs • Link
from Nasa site above; for Samuall's moons?
"Jupiter's four largest satellites, in order of their distance from Jupiter, are Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. These four moons are called the Galilean satellites. The Italian astronomer Galileo discovered them in 1610 with one of the earliest telescopes. "
Larry Bunce • Link
"why the fixed stars do not rise and set at the same houre..." Evidently they did not yet understand that since the earth revolves around the sun, the rise and set of fixed stars would change by 1/365th of 24 hours each night. The stars are fixed in relation to the sun if we could observe from a platform stationary to the sun.
Paul Chapin • Link
Sam, just wait a few years, and a young guy named Isaac will explain the theory behind the refractions.
A sidelight on that, involving another character we've been hearing from a lot lately: "When Robert Hooke criticised some of Newton's ideas [on optics], Newton was so offended that he withdrew from public debate. The two men remained enemies until Hooke's death."
Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaa…
Mary • Link
the lantern with pictures in glass.
L&M quote a 1663 description of Reeves's picture box given by one Monconys.
"une lanterne sourde qui a un demi-globe tout entier de crystal, d'environ 3 poulces de diametre, & qui porte bien loin la representation des objects qu'il met entre la lumiere & ce crystal par le moyen d'une feuille de verre sur laquelle ces objets sont peints..."
i.e the dark lantern projects images that have been painted onto a sheet of glass. The painted glass is placed between the source of light and the half-sphere of crystal.
No explanation of the "frame with closes on" though.
Australian Susan • Link
"...He did also bring a lanthorne with pictures in glasse, to make strange things appear on a wall, very pretty. ..."
Aaaarrrggghhh! The forerunner of countless evenings of boredom beyond belief of that curse of the 20th century - the Holiday Slide Show: "...now this one would have been *really* interesting, but the man moved just as i was taking it so you can only see a bit of the lion. Oh, no, *that's* the one with the warthog...." as yet another fuzzy picture of African savannah hoves into view, and your brain glazes over.
Interesting insight into how Sam's brain works - he really, really wants to know all.
Alec • Link
>> Sam, just wait a few years, and a young guy named Isaac will explain the theory behind the refractions.
My goode frynde Robert Hooke finds that man somewhat disagreeable. Sam has spent many happy hours investigating the world through Mr Hooke's perspectives:
http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
Scrolling forward four centuries, Sam is very much what we would now call a techno-geek. Before long he was using the fashionable term for perspectives, that is microscopes and telescopes:
http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
His goode frynde John Spong actually *built* his own microscopes:
http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
Sam once paid the princely sum of 5 pounds 6 shillings for one:
http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
He has also purchased Microscopes for Dummies by Mr. Henry Powers and my frynde Mr. Hook.
http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
>> Aaaarrrggghhh! The forerunner of countless evenings of boredom beyond belief of that curse of the 20th century - the Holiday Slide Show:
Wa-haha!
jeannine • Link
"Evidently they did not yet understand that since the earth revolves around the sun"
Larry, this gave me a chuckle as we ALL know that Sam believes the world revolves around Sam (much to our enjoyment).
Does anyone remember playing a game with a flashlight as a kid where you'd make 'hand puppets' to put on a show? Many evening camping, etc. as a kid that would actually be fun entertainment.
JWB • Link
Previously I called attention to Owen Gingerich's "The Book Nobody Read: the Revolution of Nicolaus Copernicus" in which the Harvard Science History Prof. debunks Arthur Koestlers's claim that nobody read the book. Obviously Sam has not read the book, nor has Spong.
Terry W • Link
"Does anyone remember ..... "
Yes, Jeannine, I remember scaring my sister with that technique when I was a kid. Lying in bed you can make quite a convincing "spider" on the ceiling with just a torch and your open hand. :-)
Ruben • Link
I remember the wonder discovering "chinese siluetes", as we called that when I was a boy in Parque Camet, Mar del Plata, Argentina.
If you think you can stand another wonder just see what a professional (Raymond Crowe) can do with his hands in:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KW…
(they are more clips)
cgs • Link
Questions and the seeking of answers.
Why did it take so long to ask in depth so many questions?
I dothe thinke all those spices and sugars, beans-, coffee -Lima, teas, claret, Nell's China oranges, mole tangerines, etal did modify the gray matter.
Terry Foreman • Link
"Why did it take so long to ask in depth so many questions?"
As Francis Bacon explained, we assume and seek regularity.
Michael Robinson • Link
Why did it take so long to ask in depth so many questions?
Questions were being asked, and interesting answers formulated, for several generations prior, and post, see the wonderful work by J. L. Heilbron 'The Sun in the Church: Cathedrals as Solar Observatories.' Cambridge, Mass.: 1999.
The following is a web-guide with links:
http://www.math.nus.edu.sg/aslaks…
cgs • Link
Thanks, please note only 3 dates precede the current Samuel's time, most questions were stymied by the usual answers that most modern children face today of "do not waste my time" type.
Michael Robinson • Link
only 3 dates precede the current Samuel’s time
Arguably modern astronomy begins with Toscanelli (1397 - 1482) and his observations and calculations of the orbits of the comets of 1433, 1449-50, of the appearance of Halley's comet in 1456, and the comets of May, 1457, of June-July-August, 1457, and 1472. Heilbron is generally available and repays many fold the reading; it may be a revelation, according to Dr. Heilbron, the church "gave more financial and social support to the study of astronomy for over six centuries, from the recovery of ancient learning during the late Middle Ages into the Enlightenment, than any other, and probably, all other, institutions."
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/s…
cgs • Link
Thanks MR:
I was also alluding to all the other goings at this time from poisoning the rat and and why the wind blew, why time matters, submarines [under water row boats], using gears for the 9 times multiplication table and so many other curious unexplained happenings mixing xyz's with human thought. The list is long, slide rules, lines on paper banking the beginning of derivatives, calculating fire insurance, betting on if a ship will make it to Bombay and back, burning holes in the table cloth using lenses, reading small print, painting people using a perspective box.etc. .
Second Reading
Terry Foreman • Link
"my accounts of Tangier, in order to shew them to the Lords."
L&M: The Tangier commissioners.
Terry Foreman • Link
"He did also bring a lanthorne with pictures in glasse, to make strange things appear on a wall, very pretty. "
L&M: There were several types of 'picture-box- at this time.Reeves's was described (16663) by Monconys (ii. 17-18) 'une lanterne sourde qui a une demi-globe entier de crystal, d'environ 3 poulces de diameter, & qui porte bien loin la representation des objects qu'il met entre la lumiere, e ce cristal, par le moyen d'une feuille de verre sur laquelle ces objects sont peints...'.
David G • Link
Planets are masculine? I can’t recall having run into that before. Does anyone know when that usage ceased?
Bryan • Link
Planets are masculine?
SP was educated in the classics, Roman and Greek. Saturn and Jupiter were (are?) male gods so it would be natural for SP to use masculine pronouns. If he had mentioned Venus he would likely have used feminine pronouns.
Mary K • Link
Reeves's pictures on glass
Forerunners of the Magic Lantern Show that entertained many a Victorian family?
Robin Peters • Link
" Aaaarrrggghhh! The forerunner of countless evenings of boredom beyond belief of that curse of the 20th century - the Holiday Slide Show:"
Now things have progressed further and we have to wade through holiday snaps on Facebook ETC.
john • Link
"which is a strange dullness, methinks."
Unsure how to interpret this. The OED lists several meanings (omitting citations, which all go back to before Pepys):
The state or quality of being dull.
1. Slowness or obtuseness of intellect; stupidity.
2. Sluggishness, inertness, inactivity; drowsiness.
3. Gloominess of mind or spirits: now esp. as arising from want of interest.
4. Irksomeness; uninteresting character or quality.
5. Want of sensibility or acuteness (of the senses); want of sharpness, clearness, brightness, distinctness, or intensity (of physical qualities); bluntness, dimness, etc.: see dull a. 2, 6, 7.
San Diego Sarah • Link
"which is a strange dullness, methinks."
I suspect Reeves knew what worked, and was very good at manufacturing lenses ... but had no idea of the theory behind why they worked. Pepys quest for knowledge has trouble with that. He should go to more Royal Society meetings: why is their favorite question.