| RefNo | MS/603/11/17 |
| Previous numbers | 1963 |
| Level | Item |
| Title | Letter from T E [Thomas Edward] Thorpe, Whinfield, Salcombe, S Devon, to [Joseph] Larmor |
| Creator | Thorpe; Sir Thomas Edward (1845-1925); British chemist |
| Recipient | Larmor; Sir Joseph (1857-1942); Irish theoretical physicist |
| Date | 17 March 1917 |
| Description | He has been working steadily on the Cavendish papers over the winter. The work is almost completed and he has discovered many interesting things, including among the unpublished papers. [Henry] Cavendish anticipated Scheele in discovering and isolating tartaric acid and arsenic acid, with accurate descriptions of these and a number of salts. He also analysed air from the upper atmosphere using samples taken by [Jean-Pierre François] Blanchard and [John] Jeffries.Thorpe made most finds in Cavendish's physical papers, including his determination of the thermal expansion of all known gases. He might have discovered [Jacques] Charles's law more than a dozen years before Charles. Cavendish made a special study of the thermal expansion of the air, arriving at a number almost identical to [John] Dalton. Thorpe dicusses one of the most important papers, on the vapour tension of water, which he thinks is 'wonderful'. Also striking is work on the latent heat and theory of boiling. Even in published works, there are things which have been overlooked, giving the example of isolation of hydrates. He has sent the astronomical papers to [Frank] Dyson, while the magnetic papers are with [Charles] Chree, and he notes others who are contributing. The work is nearly ready and he has prefaced it with a short biographical study of Cavendish. |
| Extent | 8p. |
| Format | Manuscript |
| PhysicalDescription | Ink on paper |
| AccessStatus | Open |
Fellows associated with this archive
| Code | PersonName | Dates |
| NA7855 | Thorpe; Sir; Thomas Edward (1845 - 1925); chemist | 1845 - 1925 |