{"product_id":"instruments-and-the-imagination-9780691606453","title":"Instruments and the Imagination","description":"\u003cp\u003eThomas Hankins and Robert Silverman investigate an array of instruments from the seventeenth through the nineteenth century that seem at first to be marginal to science--magnetic clocks that were said to operate by the movements of sunflower seeds, magic lanterns, ocular harpsichords (machines that played different colored lights in harmonious mixtures), Aeolian harps (a form of wind chime), and other instruments of natural magic designed to produce wondrous effects. By looking at these and the first recording instruments, the stereoscope, and speaking machines, the authors show that scientific instruments first made their appearance as devices used to evoke wonder in the beholder, as in works of magic and the theater. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe authors also demonstrate that these instruments, even though they were often tricks, were seen by their inventors as more than trickery. In the view of Athanasius Kircher, for instance, the sunflower clock was not merely a hoax, but an effort to demonstrate, however fraudulently, his truly held belief that the ability of a flower to follow the sun was due to the same cosmic magnetic influence as that which moved the planets and caused the rotation of the earth. The marvels revealed in this work raise and answer questions about the connections between natural science and natural magic, the meaning of demonstration, the role of language and the senses in science, and the connections among art, music, literature, and natural science. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eOriginally published in 1995. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe \u003cb\u003ePrinceton Legacy Library\u003c\/b\u003e uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Thomas L. Hankins, Robert J. Silverman\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Princeton University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 07\/14\/2014\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 352\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.80lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 11.00h x 8.50w x 0.73d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780691606453","brand":"Princeton University Press","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":40088160895091,"sku":"9.78E+12","price":68.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/products\/img_628baed9-53b6-4f04-bc20-3824b9f00e81.jpg?v=1652624278","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/products\/instruments-and-the-imagination-9780691606453","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}