Statement of a theory of life, founded on observations & experiments / by David Porter, M.D.

  • Porter, David, M.D.
Date:
1829
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Statement of a theory of life, founded on observations & experiments / by David Porter, M.D. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    1*1 f i. or 'S.. Txi.R iy G&*iSlfaUb f . / • i'x,;.^ Principle?.— Matter is naturally divi ded i nt,v two p?>. mry principles, which shall be named simply solid and (SarVf*. SoliA^ i$ composed of indivisible parts or p\rticles,,of d:'.terent forms, white produce the differences of elementary, bodies. Fluid dues net cohere to form.ultimate particles, but is essentially repulsive of itself and ia£> nitely attenuated. Natural bodies consist, of solid &, fluid, in varying proportions; yet their solidity and fluidity are not owing merely to the proportions of solid and fluid'they contain, bat are mixed effects of those proportions and the structures.of their component particles. The.terms solid and fluid, must here be understood to denote these- primary principles and not.natural bodies, untassjhe latter are named,. 2. Primiry laws.—S:»lid particles lead to occupy the least pos- sible space, or in other words, to perfect solidity. Flu id, oruhe other/ hand, tends to.oocupy the greatest possible space, or in other.words*, to equal and universal diffusion,. 3. Diffusion.cf the Primary Principles.—:As fluid tends to equal/ diffusion throughout apace, solid particles with regard to it are vacua*, which it enters and fills in varying proportions, according to their va- rying capacities mil susqepJUhtjities, arising from iheif- diSoreaces.o£ form. The particles thus enlarged, with the exception which will l^ ^lentioned hereafter., are kept in contact, so aa to avoid interstices or vacua of solid. Artificial vacta are only void of solid, for they con- tain then%full quantity of fluid; which cannot be excluded in the leas* from even the torrioellian vacuum. 4. Composition of Bodies.—Bodies are composed of solid parti- cles, charged with fluid in different proportions. The amount of fluid a, solid particle can receivers the measure of its capacity; and this ie different, not only in different elementary particles, but in the same, under different degrees of procure. As alhparlid es exclude fluid as cnuch as possible, manv contain less than Ccir capacity would admit:. Of. The facility with which fluid-enters bodies.is inversely as their ex-, eluding power, and may he called their., susceptibility. The relative quantities which bodies contain in cquilibrio, are their specifc quan- tities. Any addition to, or subtraction, from, specific quantity, .con^tt., lutes the plus or minus state respectively. 6. Attraction or Gravity.—AH particles cfLodirs are.vacua i.inf- lation to fluid, as they exclude it; consequently flnid v, if: press en them for admittance in the sarr.° proportion. This prodnces specific gr»vi* gy, which is in ajl cases inversely as Coir] and directly asjBnidal pwto- eure. Thus, suppose a single body of matter as the eaith, containing^ d lesser proportion of fluid, placed ic a boundless atmosphere retain*, jng a greater, it is evident that fluid tending to enter the former wiH, press it equally on all points of its surface, in columns... from infinite., gpace, like r&vsto. a centre, 6? thus keep it fixed in jjs place. No^ eyooose two todies, q* the so£ fite^rth. ffcjced «?.♦. a*v <*.[:-■■