The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
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The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
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1838-1923
American chemist who in 1887 performed, in collaboration with Albert Michelson, the crucial experiments showing the medium called ether does not exist. The ether was thought to be a massless substance that pervaded all of space, even a vacuum. The assumed presence of ether provided a way to rationalize how electrical and magnetic phenomena could act at a distance and to explain the propagation of light. Michelson proposed that, if there is an ether, it could be detected by using two beams of light; one would travel with the ether and the other across it. There should be a difference in time for these two beams. The lack of any difference made this one of the most famous negative results in history. The Michelson-Morley experiment played a role in Albert Einstein's development of his theory of special relativity in 1905.