JF Ptak Science Books: Outsider Thinking--Space Friction, 1944

WWI Photography Catalog

Google search

The Fine Print

The History of Ideas Blog by John Ptak is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at longstreet.typepad.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://www.thesciencebookstore.com.

« Found Art & a Massive Simplification | Main | Shovel-Leaners of 1565 »

Outsider Thinking--Space Friction, 1944

JF Ptak Science Books Quick Post

"Ist der Weltraum absolut leer, oder nicht?" ("Is outer space absolutely empty, or not?")

Carl Kutter challenged Isaac Newton on the 1st law of motion. Or at least that is what it looks like to me, the story presented in a slim but attractively designed pamphlet, published in Basel in 1944. Die Weltraumreibung presents the issue of "space friction", and I frankly could not make my way through that much of it--not even to the point of understanding whay Halley's Comet is illustrated on the front cover. But the design is interesting, and the issue was certainly very highly unexpected.