NOTICES AND ABSTRACTS 



OP 



MISCELLANEOUS COMMUNICATIONS TO THE SECTIONS. 



MATHEMATICS AND PHYSICS. 



Mathematics. 



Introductory Remarks by the President, The Earl of Rosse. 



It has, I believe, been usual, at least recently, in opening the proceedings, to give, as 

 far as may be practicable, a general outline of the business to be brought before the 

 Section, and some kind of notice of the order in which it is likely to be taken. As, 

 however, many papers are often sent in after the meeting of the" Section, and as 

 frequently circumstances arise rendering it necessary to alter the order of proceeding, 

 any notice that can be given must be very imperfect; the daily notices, however, 

 will in some degree supply the deficiency. It has also been usual, I believe, and it i3 

 obviously convenient, in some degree to define the general character of the business 

 to be transacted, so that new Members may be enabled better to decide whether to 

 attend this Section or some other. I have made inquiry, and find that already there 

 have been received papers on pure mathematics, applied mathematics, magnetism, 

 light, electricity, and meteorology, besides papers on the construction of philoso- 

 phical instruments. From the titles of the papers, some idea may be formed of the 

 general character of the business to be transacted ; still there are many subjects, in 

 fact several branches of science, which are as yet unrepresented in the papers. 



First as to the papers on pure mathematics. I need perhaps hardly say that essays 

 on so abstruse a subject cannot be of very much interest except to mathematicians ; 

 and even mathematicians, unless the papers happen to relate to the particular 

 branches of mathematics with which they are most conversant, may perhaps be 

 sometimes unable to do more than catch the general scope and leading principles of 

 the paper ; still without mathematical knowledge many may often, in the results 

 announced, and indeed in the remarks casually elicited, obtain interesting glimpses 

 into the nature of mathematical processes, and some idea of the progress making 

 in that direction. 



In applied mathematics there '19 much more of general interest, and the results 

 are often perfectly intelligible without a special education. I recollect at the Meet- 

 ing of the British Association at Oxford, the general results of a very abstruse in- 

 vestigation in applied mathematics in physical astronomy, were so brought forward 

 as to rivet the attention of the whole Section. It was an account given in general 

 terms by M. Le Verrier of his researches for the identification of a comet. 



The discoveries in electricity, magnetism, heat, and light cannot fail to be of great 

 general interest. To the human mind nothing is so fascinating as progress. It is 

 not that which we have long had we most value, but that which we have recently 

 acquired : we especially prize new acquisitions, while we enjoy almost unconsciously 

 gifts of far greater value we have long been in possession of. This is our nature ; 

 thus we are constituted ; it certainly is not surprising therefore that we should have 



1859. 1 



