It bridges the gap between the natural sciences and music theory and, nearly a century after its first publication, it is still a standard text for the study of physiological acoustics — the scientific basis of musical theory. It is also a treasury of knowledge for musicians and students of music and a major work in the realm of aesthetics, making important contributions to physics, anatomy, and physiology in its establishment of the physical theory of music. Difficult scientific concepts are explained simply and easily for the general reader.The first two parts of this book deal with the physics and physiology of music. Part I explains the sensation of sound in general, vibrations, sympathetic resonances, and other phenomena. Part II cover combinational tones and beats, and develops Helmholtz's famous theory explaining why harmonious chords are in the ratios of small whole numbers (a problem unsolved since Pythagoras).Part III contains the author's theory on the aesthetic relationship of musical tones. After a survey of the different principles of musical styles in history (tonal systems of Pythagoras, the Church, the Chinese, Arabs, Persians, and others), he makes a detailed study of our own tonal system (keys, discords, progression of parts).Important points in this 576-page work are profusely illustrated with graphs, diagrams, tables, and musical examples. 33 appendices discuss pitch, acoustics, and music, and include a very valuable table and study of the history of pitch in Europe from the fourteenth to the nineteenth centuries.

    A necessary companion to Darwin's The Origin of Species, it springs from the ingenious mind of one of his closest friends, geologist Charles Lyell, whose theories were a critical influence on Darwin's landmark work. First published in 1863, this exploration of the implications of Darwin's "natural selection" for humans remains one of the clearest, most concise explanations of a foundational branch of modern biology. Eminently insightful, the books sings with a scientific poeticism -- chapter sections have such titles as: . "Works of Art in Danish Peat-Mosses" . "Curiosity awakened by the systematic Exploration of the Brixham Cave" . "Two Species of Elephant and Hippopotamus coexisting with Man in France" . "Extinct Mammalia in the Valley of the Oise" Readers in the sciences are sure to find this essential book a highly engaging one as well. Scottish geologist and natural philosopher SIR CHARLES LYELL (1797-1875) was one of the foremost popularizers of science of his time, and the fundamental scientific concepts he developed continue to shape geology and evolutionary biology today. He also wrote the multivolume Principles of Geology: An Attempt to Explain the Former Changes of the Earth's Surface by Reference to Causes Now in Operation. Craters on Mars and the Moon are named in his honor.

    Charles Darwin encouraged Bates to write this book about his 11-year experience exploring and collecting insects in the Amazon basin.