Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, "Letter" to "Lightfoot, John" / Volume 16, Slice 5

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Gutenberg ID

41567

Title

Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, "Letter" to "Lightfoot, John" / Volume 16, Slice 5

Language

en

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

This volume from the Eleventh Edition of Encyclopaedia Britannica offers a comprehensive alphabetical survey of topics ranging from legal instruments like letters patent and credit to historical figures such as John Lightfoot and Georg Lichtenberg. It blends rigorous scientific inquiry with detailed historical accounts, providing an authoritative reference for arts, sciences, literature, and general information.

Summary up to 500 words

Volume XVI, Slice V of the Eleventh Edition of Encyclopaedia Britannica offers a comprehensive snapshot of early 20th-century knowledge across law, history, science, and geography. The legal section elucidates 'letters patent,' open documents granting sovereign privileges like peerages or offices, contrasting them with sealed writs close. It also details the arbitrary French 'lettres de cachet,' royal orders used for imprisonment without trial, rooted in the maxim that the king is above the law. Historical profiles highlight Roman figures such as Gaius Licinius Calvus Stoio, whose laws ended patrician-plebeian struggles, and Emperor Licinius, who met a tragic end after a civil war with Constantine. The volume also examines ancient Roman institutions like the lictors, attendants who carried fasces to symbolize a magistrate's imperium. Scientific entries explore the frontiers of physics, featuring Georg Lichtenberg's investigations into electricity and his distinctive 'Lichtenberg figures' created by discharging Leyden jars onto resin plates. The text further addresses optical physics, discussing the distinction between wave-speed and group-velocity in light propagation through media like carbon bisulphide, a concept clarified by experiments involving red and blue light. Historical notes on optics trace the invention of spectacles to the late 13th century and discuss the theoretical evolution from emission theories to undulatory models. Geographical entries describe locations such as Letterkenny in Ireland, noted for its cathedral and grain trade, and Licodia Eubea in Sicily, a site of ancient Hellenization. The volume also features John Lightfoot, an English divine and rabbinical scholar renowned for his extensive biblical commentaries and Hebrew studies, particularly his 'Horae Hebraicae et Talmudicae.' Collectively, these entries serve as a dense repository of factual knowledge, reflecting the era's understanding of constitutional machinery, ancient history, physical science, and geography.

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• Encyclopedias