[1859 GASSIOT PAPER: CATHODE RAYS, PARTICLES, STRATIFICATION, & THE ROOTS OF EARLY TELEVISION]: On the Stratifications in Electrical Discharges as Observed in Torricellian and other Vacua -- SECOND Communication [extracted from] The Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Vol. 149, Received Dec.9, 1858. Read Jan 13, 1859, [1859 publication], pp. 137-160
London: Taylor and Francis, 1859. 1st Edition. FIRST EDITION (1859 extract) of GASSIOT’S FINAL PAPER REPORTING HIS CONCLUSIONS ON IMPORTANT EXPERIMENTS IN WHICH HE OBSERVED DEFLECTIONS OF CATHODE RAYS BY ELECTROSTATIC CHARGES & MAGNETISM. “Gassiot's work was particularly important in the demise of the contact theory of voltaic electricity” (Wikipedia).
NOTE that Gassiot published four papers on this subject, this being the last. In a separate listing we offer all four papers together.
In 1858 & 1859, John Gassiot reported experiments in which he observed deflections of cathode rays by electrostatic charges & magnetism. These findings (along with Plücker’s) provided the first evidence that ‘cathode rays’ carry an electric charge & might be particles. The roots of television can even be found in Gassiot’s research into electric discharges in rarefied gases. With Faraday & others, Gassiot’s work was part of the foundation of cathode-ray-tube technology which led much later to electron physics (History of Science: The Wenner Collection; Shiers, Early TV Bibliography). Item #1250
CONDITION: London: Taylor & Francis. 1st edition paper as extracted from Philosophical Transactions. 4to. One lithographed plates & 15 figures (induction coils, tubes, apparatus, striae). The 1858 plate has very slight toning at the edges. Near fine.
Price: $125.00