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The Heretofore Unpublished Letters of Ernest Glitch

Posted by timothy on from the before-workman's-comp dept.

Roger Curry writes "Letters to Michael Faraday in 1856 from previously unknown victorian experimentalist Ernest Glitch have recently been discovered. The history of science may need to be revised. His letters, and accounts of his work, would appear to indicate the observation of laser action in air, a Victorian Nitrogen Laser, more than a century before Maiman first demonstrated his ruby laser. Also, in a letter dated 8th July 1856 he notes the crystallisation of the fullerene C60 some 150 years before Kroto. Amazingly, there are also accounts of a Liquid-Fuel Rocket Engine detailing the use of hypergolic propellants and deLaval nozzles, a Victorian Tesla Coil, with reference to a possible medieval Coil, and Manned Flight achieved long before the Wright Bros., using Multiple Valve-less Pulse Jets."

6 of 180 comments (clear)

  1. If only... by Hi_2k · · Score: 3, Insightful

    If Jules Verne or H.G. Wells had written comedy we probably would have gotten something like this

    --
    When life gives you crap, Make Crapade.
    Sluggy Freelance.
  2. save us from ourselves depat. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    i think someone wise and learned needs to start moderating the posted news a little closer. /. is starting to turn into the online edition of Joe Average's "Discover" magazine.

  3. Old News by Lu+Xun · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Sierra has known about this for some time now.

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    That's not a soda... it's a caffeine delivery device!
  4. Re:Meaningless by Invicta{HOG} · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It might be devoid of meaning, but it's full of funny! Some people just don't recognize humor, I suppose. Did you even read the articles?

  5. Glitch growing grass by Antity · · Score: 3, Insightful

    He writes:

    Later that day, Hodges arrived in my lab with Maud the maid. Both were in a dreadful funk. Hodges exclaiming that a volcano was erupting in the south pasture, Maud maintaining that the devil himself had arrived. My first thought was that the pair of them had been at my Indian hemp plantation again, however this would not have accounted for Maud`s clothing, which appeared to have large monoclinic sulphur crystals attached to the posterior regions.

    Indian hemp? Become a scientist NOW! :-)

    --
    42. Easy. What is 32 + 8 + 2?
  6. Re:Boondoggle or Foofoorah? by Doug+Merritt · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Okay, so you and some others missed the humor; the site is, after all, beautifully done, and convincing in tone and style (.e.g there are lots of well-documented stories about early chemists badly mistreating and maiming assistants exactly as Hodges was -- and worse).

    What I don't understand is why anyone would complain about this if it were real news.

    I mean, this would be an earth-shattering change to the history of science -- the biggest ever! But you say "ho hum, who cares, why are boring stories getting posted"????!!!

    That's much sadder than merely missing that it's humor.

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    Professional Wild-Eyed Visionary