Re: Wheatstone: whatta guy

[Ronald.W.Doerfler@xxxxxxx]

>>Wheatstone, the 19th century British physicist and 3D theorist , inventor of
>>the type of stereoviewer that commonly bears his name, was also the inventor
>>of the concertina. A real rennaissance guy, that Wheatstone. 

>Wheatstone is better known for the "Wheatstone Bridge", a device that
>measures electrical resistance.  It is so elementary that it is found even
>in high shcool texts on Electricity.

>He was an experimentalist and not a theorist.  He was involved in many 
>different areas and has many inventions.  

If a short diversion from 3D is OK, I mention that in Cousin's famous book
on sundials, he is credited with inventing a dial that tells time by
means of the polarization of sunlight, which varies in a given direction
as the sun's angle changes.  It shows a photograph of his device, which
resembles a rotatable microscope and contains a polarizer and prism
(both mainstays of stereo viewing...).

Ron Doerfler


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