Experimenta circa Effectum, etc. Expériences sur l’effet du conflict électrique sur l’aiguille animantée

by Hans Christian ØRsted, Oersted

$9,500 · Offered by Manhattan Rare Books

Against the technological utility conventionally demanded by Denmark’s absolutist regime, Ørsted maintained that the study of natural philosophy should be justified by its cognitive and aesthetic benefits. … To him the laws of nature enshrined a particular beauty and harmony …. He believed scientific research per se to be closely akin to religious worship. … The fact that nature is intelligible and that she abides by laws was awe-inspiring to him.

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