This latest edition of The Giant’s Shoulders celebrates the birthday of Caroline Herschel who was born on 16 March 1750. In the early 1770s she moved to Bath to join her brother William. Initially she helped him teaching and performing music. On …

Oh, I’m familiar with Bulwer Lytton‘s work!

The blog is light on comment at the moment because before I go any further I have to deal with the matter of race and ethnology. Something T.H Huxley and other ethnologists were also trying to do. The concept of evolution was a massive catalyst for change in Ethnology although traditionaly in the u.k the Ethnology society grew out of the anti- slave movement.

But I have not looked at the subject full. I will stop with Darwin but I need to ensure as background that I look at the subject up until the 1950′s as I need to know exactly what I am doing. I am happy to speculate to an extent when I start looking at new subjects. It’s away of dealing with bias, but sometimes it may pay of at a later date.

But on race and ethnology I find myself reluctant to say anything until I am done. As it has produced a whole host of crap particulary with regard to evolution.

I also think part of the reason Ethnology was of such interest to the first evolutionary biologists was because they understood rather more about how identities are constructed than perhaps is the case today in science.

You may think what I am doing is stupid. I think it is worth the attempt.
Going from the comments you make I think you are attempting to use mind reading skills to determine my approach as I don’t say that much about it.

Perhaps it will be unsuccesfull, I don’t know at this stage; but it is certainly worth the effort. If I cannot make an airtight argument I certainly won’t attempt to publish anything this is not done for vanity or personal glory.

I certainly won’t be seeking any academic funding to complete it as that puts me at the potential risk of having to engage with individuals who have a great expertise in there own area but seem to think that allows them to become an expert in every subject, including ones that remain unwritten.

Its certainly not the case with all academics but it is a part of academic study and not one that is always for the best.

But feel free to continue. If you feel it is a joke. It’s not a subject that fills me with laughter but clearly as you know what I am doing you think it is.

Phosphorescence, or the Emission of light by Minerals Plants and Other Animals. T.L. Pihpson. P.h.d F.C.S 1862.

see page 68-9. Not identical but rather close.

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FWECAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=Thomas+Lamb+Phipson+(1862),+Phosphorescence;+or,+the+emission+of+Light+by+minerals,+Plants,+and+animals&source=bl&ots=Ym_C_VQ2-u&sig=JwyKBFjVVcuy5NhMCy5zpQbE8Bk&hl=en&ei=4x6LS9iuG4_20gS-3InZCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CBAQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=&f=false

“The will O the wisp and it’s folklore”. Popular Science Monthly. Or relics of Aryan science as he terms such matters. It was still a topic of conversation with regard to such things as ball lightning at this time by the middle classes.

I have a slightly later book written by a scientist but on the chapter on Boyle and sulphur (may be a different one). He starts off with a letter from relatives (or it may have been his wife) who saw will o’ the wisps in the Scottish borders. It’s slightly later than the source you give.

But I wondered why it was included. Must dig out the source. Account above is a sober one but it is setting a precedence for late eyewitness accounts like my one from the borders which more speculative.

I won’t offer any suggestions as Ive been reading too much Robert Kirk, James Fraser and a later popular science writer with an interest in optics and wondering; until I hit the library tommorow.

Nice site, congrats on the nomination. You should add Edward Bulwer Lytton to the list of pulp fiction. If memory serves me correct he was offered a post at the admiralty like Winston but turned it down to concentrate on writing. Lytton has one classic in the utopian horror genre.