Book description
THE SCIENCE OF MECHANICS- A CRITICAL AND HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF ITS
DEVELOPMENT by DR. ERNST MACH Originally published in 1919. TRANSLATORS
PREFACE TO THE SECOND ENGLISH EDITION: SINCE the appearance of the first
edition of the present translation of Machs Mechanics , the views which
Professor Mach has advanced on the philoso phy of science have found
wide and steadily increas ing acceptance. Many fruitful and elucidative
con troversies have sprung from his discussions of the historical,
logical, and psychological foundations of physical science, and in
consideration of the great ideal success which his works have latterly
met with in Continental Europe, the time seems ripe for a still wider
dissemination of his views in English-speaking countries. The study of
the history and theory of science is finding fuller and fuller
recognition In our universities, and it Is to be hoped that the present
ex emplary treatment of the simplest and most typical branch of physics
will stimulate further progress in this direction, The text of the
present edition, which contains the extensive additions made by the
author to the Die Mechanik in ihrer Entwickelung historisch-kritisch
dargesiellt. Von Dr. Ernst Mach, Professor an der Universitat zu Wien.
Mit 257 Abbildungen. First German edition, 1883. Fourth German edition,
1901. First edition of the English translation, Chicago, The Open Court
Publishing Co., 1893 latest German editions, has been thoroughly revised
by the translator. All errors, either of substance or typography, so far
as they have come to the trans lators notice, have been removed, and in
many cases the phraseology has been altered. The sub-title of the work
has, in compliance with certain criticisms, also been changed, to accord
more with the wording of the original title and to bring out the idea
that the work treats of the principles of mechanics predomi nantly under
the aspect of their development Entwicke lung. To avoid confusion in the
matter of references, the main title stands as in the first edition. The
authors additions, which are considerable, have been relegated to the
Appendix. This course has been deemed preferable to that of
incorporating them in the text, first, because the numerous refer ences
in other works to the pages of the first edition thus hold good for the
present edition also, and sec ondly, because with few exceptions the
additions are either supplementary in character, or in answer to
criticisms. A list of the subjects treated in these ad ditions is given
in the Table of Contents, under the heading Appendix on page xix.
Special reference, however, must be made to the additions referring to
Hertzs Mechanics pp. 548-555, and to the history of the development of
Professor Machs own philosophical and scientific views, notably to his
criticisms of the concepts of mass, inertia, ab solute motion, etc., on
pp. 542-547, 555574, and 579 - 583. The remarks here made will be found
highly elucidative, while the references given to the rich literature
dealing with the history and philosophy of science will also be found
helpful. As for the rest, the text of the present edition of the
translation is the same as that of the first. It has had the sanction of
the author and the advantage of revision by Mr. C. S. Peirce, well known
for his studies both of analytical mechanics and of the his tory and
logic of physics. Mr. Peirce read the proofs of the first edition and
rewrote Sec. 8 in the chapter on Units and Measures, where the original
was in applicable to the system commonly taught in this county. THOMAS
J. McCoRMACK. LA SALLE, ILL., February, 1902.
