2-41-3. Albert A. Michelson to H. Poincaré
June 29 1899
Cook’s Tourist Waiting Room
Ludgate Circus, London11Michelson was in England to receive an honorary degree from Cambridge University (Livingston, 1973, 206).
My dear M. Poincaré,
This is just to call your attention to a reply to your letter which I published in “Nature” — by Mr. Love, June 1st I think.22In his letter to the editor of Nature, published 01.06.1899, Love (1899) ignored Gibbs’ second letter (1899), and banked on the ambiguity of Poincaré’s letter to Michelson (§ 2-41-1): M. Poincaré …does not assert that the sum of the series can be obtained by allowing to approach zero and to increase at the same time, in such a way that remains finite; but he states that Prof. Michelson is perfectly right in contending that the result of this process is indeterminate. So far as I am aware this contention has not been called in question in the course of the discussion.
It is written in his characteristic way and I trust you will think it worth while to send a reply.
My own impression is that he knows he is upholding a “forlorn hope.”
Cordially yours,
A. A. Michelson
ALS 2p. Private collection, Paris 75017.
References
- Fourier’s series. Nature 59, pp. 606. External Links: Link Cited by: 2-41-3. Albert A. Michelson to H. Poincaré.
- The Master of Light: A Biography of Albert A. Michelson. Charles Scribner’s, New York. Cited by: 2-41-3. Albert A. Michelson to H. Poincaré.
- Fourier’s series. Nature 60, pp. 100–101. External Links: Link Cited by: 2-41-3. Albert A. Michelson to H. Poincaré.
