The Physical Treatises of Pascal: The Equilibrium of Liquids and the Weight of the Mass of the Air

First English edition of this modern scholarly English translation of Pascal's foundational physical treatises, issued as part of the Records of Civilization: Sources and Studies series. Edited with notes and historical commentary under the auspices of the Department of History, Columbia University. Blaise Pascal was a seventeenth century French polymath, the likes of which we don't see much anymore. His first important treatise, on geometry, appeared in 1639, when he was only sixteen. By the time he died in 1662, at age 39, he had written significant works on mathematics, physics, philosophy, and theology. More than that, he invented the hydraulic press and the syringe, and in what may be considered the opposite end of the creative spectrum, his prose is still considered so eloquent and persuasive that his essays are studied as works of literature, separate from their ideas themselves. So when Columbia University was putting together its compendium ?Records of Civilization: Sources and Studies??a series of primary sources translated into English with notes and essays by contemporary scholars that was published through most of the twentieth century?it was natural at least one work by Pascal would be included. This volume is essentially a reprint and translation of a book published by Pascal?s brother-in-law, Florin P?rier, in 1663, soon after Pascal?s death, with additional notes and essays by the modern editors. ?The Physical Treatises of Pascal,? is the modern title; the original book was titled starts with ?The Equilibrium of Liquids,? which also the title of the first essay. That essay explains what became known as ?Pascal's law? or ?Pascal's principle,? which engineers put into use in ways most of us take advantage of every day in our car braking systems, in water towers, and in dams. The second treatise is ?The Weight of the Mass of the Air.? It recounts Pascal?s experiments with air pressure and vacuums (some of which were actually performed by a conscripted P?rier) based on earlier scientists Evangelista Torricelli and Galileo. Both the original book and this reprint and translation go on to include a number of fragments, notes, tables, and letters regarding these and other experiments found in Pascal?s papers after his death. Luckily for us, the book is full of small, simple illustrations of both the experiments themselves and helping to explain the conclusions Pascal reached from his observations. There are also three larger pull-out engravings still in perfect condition, mostly of the equipment Pascal used and created. This is an excellent volume for anyone interested in the history of science, or for anyone who has studied physics or mathematics and made use of the concepts Pascal developed that are now taken for granted, and wondered where they came from. This copy was published in 1937 and is the first printing of a ?first edition thus,? that is, the first appearance of these treatises in a modern English translation with scholarly commentary. It has a dark green or blue bookcloth binding. (Reasonable minds can disagree about the color.) The gold stamped lettering and simple straight line decoration on the spine is still bright. The seal of Columbia University is blind stamped on the front cover, within a blind-stamped simple frame around the edges of the cover. A well-preserved copy, tightly bound with sound hinges. No major defects. A small (approximately 5/8) repairs tear is present to the cloth at the upper spine edge. Moderate bumping to corners, most pronounced at the top front and lower right; lighter elsewhere. A few minor surface impressions to the rear cover. A faint stain is visible at the lower edge of the text block. Internally clean and unmarked, with even age toning throughout; no tears or markings to the text. Photos are forthcoming, or available immediately on request. First edition thus, being the first edition of this modern English translation with scholarly commentary.…