Abstract
THE variety of matter contained in this small book shows the condensing power of vector notation, especially when combined with a concise literary style. The theoretical part includes the elements of the barycentric calculus, as well as a vector analysis in which vectors are written either in single letters, or in the form B–A, where A, B are points. Scalar and vector products are treated separately, so that quaternions do not come in. Special points to notice are that a scalar product has given to it the sign opposite to that assigned by Hamilton; the. effect of this is that if α, β, υ are three orthogonal unit-vectors, α2 = β2 = υ2=i, and versors have to be treated by introducing a symbol i, such that 12 = - 1, and is not a vector. There is a good deal to be said for this; but it is most unfortunate that the authors take the clockwise sense of rotation for the positive one, especially considering the use of vectors and vector products in physics.
Éliménts de Calcul vectoriel, avec de nombreuses Applications à la Géométrie, à la Mécanique, et à la Physique mathématique.
By Prof. C. Burali-Forti Prof. R. Marcolongo. Édition française traduite de l'ltalien et augmentée d'un Supplément par S. Lattè. Pp. vi + 229. (Paris: A. Hermann et Fils, 1910.) Price 8 francs.
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M., G. Éliménts de Calcul vectoriel, avec de nombreuses Applications à la Géométrie, à la Mécanique, et à la Physique mathématique . Nature 86, 75 (1911). https://doi.org/10.1038/086075a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/086075a0
