Chapter 23 Section 10

three two From the above points, we can see that the five last-mentioned categories of cases (i.e., compatible cases, unique cases, infidelity cases, cross-border cases and power cases) should not be reserved for a certain nature. It will be dealt with later (like the other cases listed before it and most of the cases cited later), but should be collected into one volume at the beginning to make a specific history.For these examples help to compile the things that enter the understanding, and to correct the unhealthy appearance of the understanding itself-we know that it is impossible for the understanding not to be stained and stained under the impressions of daily experience. , so that it finally went into a fork and became distorted.

We should therefore use these examples as a preliminary measure to correct and cleanse our understanding.For whatever withdraws the understanding from what it is accustomed to do, smoothes the ground of the understanding so that it may receive the cool, pure light of the true Idea. Besides, these examples also pave and prepare the way for the action part.Regarding this point, when I talk about the deductive method leading to practice later, I will explain it in an appropriate place. ①①Fuller pointed out that the so-called practice-oriented deductive method, that is, the seventh of the nine aids to understanding listed in Volume 2, Article 2, Bacon did not make. - translator

Thirty-three (11) Cases of friend and foe—this is also called a case belonging to fixed propositions. This case shows two cases: one is that a body or a concrete substance always carries the quality to be investigated, like an inseparable companion; It is often not a friend, but it is like an enemy and an enemy.From such instances we can make definite and general propositions, affirmative or negative, in which the subject is a concrete object, and the predicate is the quality itself to be investigated.We know that particular propositions will not be fixed.That is to say, in such propositions, the quality to be studied is evanescent and mobile in any concrete body, and sometimes increases or is acquired, and on the other hand disappears or is thrown away.

Particular propositions, therefore, have no priority over other propositions, except in circumstances such as migration, which has been said before.But even these particular propositions, if prepared and checked with general propositions, are still of great use; and this I will say where appropriate. ① It should also be pointed out that even in general propositions we do not require precise or absolute affirmation or negation.For even if they admit of some rare and unique exception, they are sufficient for the present purpose. ②①Fuller noted that this is an allusion to the example of the appendage mentioned in the next article. - translator

②Fuller pointed out that, but this kind of exception must always be regarded as subject to explanation, to explain why it deviates from the norm. In the history of science, such explanations abound. - translator The use of the companion's example is to narrow down to a narrow range what the formula should affirm.Just as by the case of emigration it is possible to narrow down to this what is supposed to be affirmed by the form—that the form of the thing must be something transmitted or destroyed by this emigration, so in the case of the companion What the form should affirm is reduced to this—that the form of the thing must be something that enters into such a composition of bodies as a constituent, or, conversely, refuses to enter.In this way, whoever knows the composition and structure of such a body is close to revealing the formula of the nature under investigation. ①① Fleur commented that, for example, suppose that what is to be inquired is the form of heat, and we see that heat is always accompanied by flames, then a careful examination of flames will detect the form or nature of heat.Likewise, if one were to inquire into the form of transparency, and see that malleability is never accompanied by transparency, then the form or quality of transparency must be something not to be found in the substance of malleability (or, given can also be found in it, at least something that has been offset by other attributes).It is evident from the limitations stated above how easily it is easy to fall into error in reasoning based only on the instances of the enemy. - translator

for example.Assuming that the property to be investigated is heat, then flame is an instance of companionship.For in water, in air, in stone, in metal, and in most other substances, heat is variable, and may come and go; but all flames are always hot; is always there.As far as fever is concerned, we have not found a single instance of an enemy here.The senses are ignorant of conditions in the interior of the earth, and of all the bodies we know with certainty, there is not one concrete thing which cannot feel heat. But to take another example, if solidity is the property to be studied, then air is an example of an enemy.Metal is both fluid and solid; glass also; water can still be solid, that is, when it freezes; but air alone can never solidify, or never give up its fluidity. possible. ①However, when it comes to this case of fixed propositions, I also offer two suggestions, which can help our current business.First, if a general affirmation or a general negation cannot exist, then careful attention should be paid to the thing, and it should be regarded as a non-existent thing. ②As mentioned above, this is what we did with the case of heat. Here, judging from the nature of things (at least as far as the essence of our knowledge is concerned), there is no general negation to be found.Likewise, if eternity or incorruptibility were the properties to be investigated, we would not find a general affirmation here.Because the words eternal or indestructible cannot be used as predicates for any object under heaven and earth. ③The second point of advice is that when we refer to any general proposition concerning any particular object, whether it is affirmative or negative, we must append to it the particular object which is closest to the other. ④ For example, when it comes to heat, it should be adorned with the softest and least burning flame; if it is mentioned incorruptibility, it should be adorned with gold, which is the closest to incorruptibility.Because this kind of situation indicates the boundary between what is natural and what is not, it helps to standardize the law and prevent the law from going out and branching out of the material conditions. ⑤① Kachin pointed out that objects and weight are excellent examples of friends, and transparency and malleability are excellent examples of enemies.

The validity of Bacon's citing of air and solidity as enemies is doubtful. Fleur goes further to point out that this view was held by the scientific community even long after Bacon; Playfair has also restated it, though in more cautious terms.In fact, experiments by Cailletet and Pictet have shown conclusively that even oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen can be liquefied, and thus perhaps solidified.About these experiments, there is a brief description in Ganot's "Physics" (English translation, first and second editions, section 382).In this way, the old so-called distinction between permanent gas and non-permanent gas has been completely erased.By legitimate analogy, it seems to follow with a high degree of probability that all liquids can also be solidified.

There are only a few liquids, such as alcohol, ethanol, and carbon disulfide, which all efforts have hitherto been unable to make solid, even at the lowest known temperatures.See Section 343 of Ganot's "Physics". - translator ②The original text of the Latin version is nonentia.Kachin pointed out that entiaandnonentia (with and without being) is a scholastic term, which Bacon used again. Fleur said that although this exhortation is expressed in scholastic language, its significance is obvious.If we cannot establish a general affirmation or a general negation.That fact alone is noteworthy.

③ Fleur pointed out that Bacon severely criticized the dogma of the invariance of celestial bodies taught by Aristotle and the Peripatetics in his book "Descriptio Globi Intellectualis". - translator ④ See the next article. - translator ⑤Kachin pointed out that Bacon believed that formulas must be limited within the limits of material conditions, which is against Plato's theory of ideas.He also pointed out that these two points of advice are actually reflected in the next quotation. - translator three four (12) Limit cases—this is the kind of appended cases mentioned in the previous article. Here we will change its name and list them separately.For examples of this kind are useful not only as affixes to fixed propositions, but also in themselves, and from their own nature. ① They unambiguously point out the real division of nature and the measurement of things, point out in what circumstances nature can act or be forced to move to what extent, and then point out the transition of nature to other things.For example, there is gold in weight, iron in hardness, whales in animal stature, dogs in smell, gunpowder in swelling, and so on. ②At the same time, the same attention should be paid to the extremes of the low as to the extremes of the high.

Examples of this are alcohol for weight, silk for firmness, skinworms for animal stature, and so on. ① Kachin noted that these cases are an appendix to the previous case, and their status is close to some exceptions to the previous article. Thus, so says Bacon, the usefulness of these instances is to show the limits of fixed propositions, such as gold being the upper limit of weight (so Bacon said), while on the other hand there are certain flames (such as the flames of alcohol) so light that they can hardly be weighed. Quantity: These are extreme cases of objects and weight. Fleur further pointed out that it is difficult to see how such cases can form a category by themselves unless they are connected with the cases mentioned in the previous article.It is evident that, taken in themselves and not in connection with other instances, they are but more striking and subtle instances. - translator

② Fleur pointed out that these examples are too many to be accurate: platinum is heavier than gold; alcohol is lighter than alcohol; diamonds are harder than iron; It is larger than any other living animal, but it takes a back seat to the geological monsters reproduced by modern geologists and anatomists. - translator ③ Although the precise method of making alcohol was made by Valerius Cordus in 1544, it is said that it was not noticed until the reinvention in the eighteenth century.So Bacon's lack of awareness of it is not surprising. ④The original text of the Latin text is vermiculicutis, and Bacon mentioned it again in the fourth and third articles of the second volume.Kachin pointed out that this is not an animal body; the original small tubes in the subcutaneous line are obstructed, and this is what it is. Fowler notes that the late Professor Rolleston told him that a German physician named Simon had discovered a tiny, microscopic animal called De modexfolliculorum, which lived on the oil it had collected inside the oil ducts of the skin. quality.But this, of course, was unknown to Bacon. - translator three five (13) Instances of federation or association—Some properties, which are marked as distinct under recognized divisions, may in fact be blended or associated. Cases showing this are called allied or combined cases. Instances of this kind show that the operations and effects originally attributed to one singularity and supposed to be peculiar to it are also possessed by other so-called singularities; and this proves that the supposed singularity is not real or real. essential, but only a variant of a public quality.Such instances are therefore of the most eminent use for elevating and elevating the understanding from distinctions of species to classes, and for dispelling phantoms and illusions of things that come to us in disguise in concrete substances. .For example, heat is still the property to be studied.We are told (and appear to have been recognized with some authority as a division) that there are three kinds of heat, namely, celestial, animal, and fire; In contrast) in essence and in species—that is to say, in the nature of the species—are distinct and distinct; for celestial heat and animal heat are fertile and sustaining , while the heat of fire is consuming and destructive. ②So we have to point out a common plot between them to see the example of alliance.Take a vine into a conservatory with a constant fire, and the vines will ripen a whole month earlier than they would have been out of doors.This shows that the ripening of the fruit, even while it is still hanging on the tree, can be effected by fire, though this ripening seems to have been the proper work of the sun. ③Starting from this clue, after the understanding has rejected the concept of the uniqueness of essence, it is easy to inquire: what is the real difference between the heat of the sun and the heat of fire that makes the two functions so different? , yet jointly participate in a public nature. ① Fleur pointed out that the division of heat into these three types is a popular idea that exists even now. - translator ②As noted by Fleur, refer to the third chapter of the second volume of "De Generatione Animalium" written by Aristotle. - translator ③ Use formal artificial insulation methods for greenhouses and greenhouses, which was unknown in Bacon's time.In the Maison Champetre (an encyclopedia on horticulture and agriculture), published in 1607, it is not mentioned; Parta, although he has written on various ways of promoting flowers and fruits, never mentions it.But bacon in "Sylva Sylvarum" 1 (item 412) speaks of keeping tropical plants indoors for conservation, in "Essay on Gardens" In the same article, it also mentioned that Yan Laihong was roasted in a stove.The concept of the modern so-called greenhouse was introduced to England from the Netherlands around the time of the revolution.The orangery built at Heidelberg in the middle of the first and seventh centuries is said to be the earliest recorded greenhouse.According to records, Albertus Magnus held a banquet in the garden of his monastery in Cologne in the winter of a certain year.The snow covered everything, and the guests were unhappy.At the beginning of the banquet, all the snow has been removed; the trees are laid out, first with leaves, then with flowers, and then with fruits; and the weather suddenly becomes summer.When the banquet begins, the midsummer suddenly follows the severe winter, and after the banquet is over, summer turns into winter again, and everything is still the same as before. This should be a fantasy explanation; I don't know if anyone has thought that this means that the host actually hosted the banquet in the greenhouse, and first led the guests to walk through the garden.This story can be found in the book "Deusche Sagen" by Grimm. Four points of difference can be found.First, that the heat of the sun is far milder and milder in degree than that of fire; second, that it is far more moist in quality (at least as it reaches us through the air); Third (and this is the main point), it is extremely uneven, increasing as it approaches, and weakening as it recedes; and this is the chief aid to the formation of bodies.Aristotle is right: the main cause of all processes of birth and death on the surface of our earth is that the sun's path through the ecliptic is inclined; Makes the heat of the sun unusually uneven.But this great man then destroyed and corrupted his correct discovery.In laying down the laws of nature (as he customarily did), he so arbitrarily designated the approach of the sun as the cause of life, and his retreat as the cause of death; and retirement) constitute the cause of birth or death regardless of each other; because the unevenness of heat is conducive to both birth and death, while the uniformity of heat is only conducive to preservation.There is also a fourth difference of species between the heat of the sun and the heat of fire, which is again of great importance, namely, that the sun's actions are carried out in slow motion over long intervals of time, The action of fire, on the other hand, is driven by human impatience to complete its work in a shorter period of time.Suppose someone painstakingly regulates the heat of a fire according to the above four points: first by reducing it to a milder and more neutral degree by many easy means; then by sprinkling and mixing a little damp; The main thing is to make it imitate the unevenness of the sun's heat; and finally put it into a slow program, even if it is not as slow as the sun's action, it will be slower than the way people usually use fire,—if Whoever does this will soon abandon the notion that there are different kinds of heat, and try to imitate the work of the sun with the heat of fire, if not equal to or even superior to it in some cases.Here we have another instance of a similar alliance: a butterfly, half-frozen and half-dead, revives after being warmed a little by the fire.This makes it easy for us to see that fire is no less capable of giving life to animals than it is to ripening plants.The same is true of the famous invention of G. Fracastorius, which consisted of covering the head of a dying apoplexy with a heated pan, and pouring the juices that overflowed from the brain. The animal essence that has been suppressed and extinguished by various obstacles expands remarkably and is stimulated to move, ③ just like fire acts on air or water, and as a result, the patient is revived and given life.Again, the eggs are sometimes hatched by the heat of a fire.Here again the heat of fire is an exact imitation of the heat of animals.In addition, there are many such cases.No one can doubt, therefore, that the heat of fire may in many things be brought to resemble the heat of heavenly bodies and animals. ④ To give another example, take motion and stillness as the properties to be studied.Here there is a division, which seems to be generally accepted and which seems to have been drawn from the depths of philosophy, namely, that all natural bodies either move in a circle, move forward in a straight line, or stand still. move.That is to say, it is either moving without an end, or going toward an end, or staying still at an end. ①Fleur notes, see Chapter 14 of Volume I of "Meteorologica" written by Aristotle, and Chapter 10 of Volume II of "DeGenerationeet Corruptione". - translator ② Kachin noted that this was a famous philosopher, astronomer, doctor, and poet, born in Verona in 1483 and died in 1553; Infectious Diseases, etc. - translator ③ According to the biography of Fracastorius, when he suffered a stroke and was unable to speak, he probably remembered how he cured a nun in Verona, so he gestured to others urgently, asking for help. Cover the hot jar over your head. (Fleur pointed out that the effect of this kind of hot pot is to thin the air in the pot, thereby reducing the air pressure on the skin surface, and the skin will swell accordingly. When doing this kind of treatment, generally A pricking instrument is used to make a cut in the swollen skin, and then a hot pot is used again, with the purpose of sucking the blood. For the effect of Bacon's statement on the spirit of animals, see the following article The sixth example. - Translator ) ④ Bacon’s denial that each of these three types of heat has its own uniqueness is obviously derived from the theory of Telesius, see “De Rerum Natura”, Volume VI, Section XX. Telesius has previously stated that artificial heat can be used to incubate eggs and to revive seemingly dead insects. And that perpetual revolving motion seems to belong to the celestial bodies alone; the state of immobility seems to belong to the earth; (besides) tends to blocks or groups similar to itself; light objects tend to the sky, and heavy objects tend to the ground.This is not a beautiful statement. ①① Fleur pointed out that this is the usual term used by the Peripatetics for the so-called rotational movement, and the words and sentences are almost like Aristotle himself; Volume Nine. Judging from the last sentence of this section, it is not clear whether Bacon accepts this statement.When discussing the seventeenth movement in Juan 2, 48, he seems to have accepted it; but in the article "Descriptio Globi Intellectualis", he questioned the two dogmas of celestial body circular motion and eternal motion (about the previous point , and see Four or five articles in one volume).This treatise was written around 1612. If we look at the two paragraphs in it together, unless we assume that he is only stating the generally accepted opinion here and does not think of criticism, we have to admit that he is dealing with this issue. A bit contradictory on this issue. The true nature and laws of motion are not established until the period after Bacon, beginning with some discoveries of Galileo and ending with those of Newton. Kachin commented that it was a pity that Bacon would have written these words after Kepler's three laws had become known, if he still believed in them. - translator But here we have an instance of a union, that is, some lower comets, which are far below the sky, but also move in a circle. ①Aristotle's fictitious statement that comets are tied to or descended from a particular star ② has long been broken, not only because the reasons he gave for it are not probable, but also because we have already shown that The divergent and irregular motion of comets in various parts of the sky is known by experience. ① Fleur pointed out that comets are also celestial bodies like planets, so it is meaningless to cite it as an example of alliance here. But Kachin shows that comets are a good example in another sense different from what Bacon thought.The comet's orbit, he said, appears to be irregular, but in reality it obeys the laws of gravity as strictly as any other orbit. But this, of course, was unknown to Bacon at the time. - translator ② Fleur noted, refer to the seventh chapter of the first volume of "Meteorologica" written by Aristotle; but he did not come up with this theory for all comets. - translator There is another instance of alliances on this subject, the motion of the air.The air is within the regression line with a larger rotating circle, and it seems to rotate from east to west. ①The tide and ebb tide at sea can also be regarded as an example here. ②From this we see that the water itself is also brought into a rotational motion from east to west (no matter how slow and easy this motion is), but it has to be carried out under the condition of being forced to retreat twice a day.Since this is the case with many things, it is evident that the motion of revolution is not confined to the heavenly bodies, but is common to both air and water. Even the theory that the so-called light matter has an upward nature is not necessarily true. ③ On this point, the bubbles of water may be taken as an example of an alliance.If there is air below the water, this air rises sharply to the surface, but it is due to the downward impinging motion of the water (as Democritus calls it) that beats it so, and not from any effort of the air itself. or struggle.When the air has risen to the surface, it does not rise any further, merely because of the slight resistance that the water does not immediately allow itself to be divided. ⑤ From this we can see that the upward desire of the air is extremely weak. ① Fleur pointed out that if there is no local cause to interfere with the trade wind, it will generally blow from east to west; Bacon refers to this here. - translator ② Fleur noted that the semidiurnal tidal system is caused by the combined or sometimes opposite suction of the sun and the moon, which not only sucks up the currents closest to them, but also sucks up the currents furthest away from them.This is true doctrine.It was Newton who first laid the foundations of this theory by means of calculation, although references to the sun and the moon, or to the influence of the sun or the moon on the tides, have often been made before, in more or less vague terms.It appears that Bacon had no doubts about this true doctrine.Bacon's own theory seems to be that the water, under the influence of the sun, naturally traveled from east to west, but was repelled by shocks on the coast of America (see his Tractate de Fluxuet R efluxu Maris).Bacon probably got the idea from the sight of the fact that the Gulf waters, under the influence of the trade winds, flowed westward during the early part of their journey, from the shores of Africa to the shores of America. See the first example in the next article. - translator ③ Kachin pointed out that since Newton discovered gravity, this conjecture has become completely useless. - translator ④ Fleur pointed out that Bacon also mentioned this impact movement under the third movement item in Article 48 of Volume II of this book; there is also a passage in the book "Sylva Sylvarum" (the second and fourth items of the experiment): "As for As for the rapid ascension of air under water, it is due to the downward impulsive motion of the water that drives the air up, not the upward motion of the air due to its frivolity. This is called impulsive motion in Democritus." Needless to say, Bacon's This explanation is delusional.The lighter molecules are displaced by the heavier ones sinking to the bottom, and must of course rise to the surface. - translator ⑤ Fleur pointed out that this fact is due to the cohesive force of the molecules in water, but as soon as the effort of the air to escape exceeds this force, the bubble will burst. - translator Take weight as an example again as the property to be studied.There is also a kind of division that is quite recognized here, that is to say, all dense and solid objects move toward the center of the earth, and all thin and frivolous objects move toward the periphery of the sky, as if they were in their proper direction. Places to go.As for this so-called concept of place, which prevails in the academy, it is foolish and naive to assume that there is any power in place.Philosophers used to say that if the earth was pierced, heavy objects would stop when they reached the center, and this is only a joke. ① If there is a nothingness or mathematical point in the world that acts on a body, or that a body desires something from it, it is a strange and effective nothingness.Bodies are acted upon only by bodies and not by anything else.This desire of bodies to rise and fall is either due to the structure of the body being moved, or to its sympathy or induction to some other body. ② Now if an object is found that is dense and solid but does not move toward the ground, ③ then this division can be declared bankrupt.If we can accept Gilbert's opinion that the earth's magnetic force attracting heavy bodies does not go beyond the orbital disk of its nature (which always operates within a certain and no further distance), ④If this opinion can be confirmed by even one example, then I shall at last have an example of a union on the subject of weight.But until now we have not encountered a single definite and obvious instance on this subject.The only nearest instance can only be mentioned of the column of water, such as is commonly seen in sailing in the Atlantic towards the two Indias.Those jets of water suddenly poured down a huge amount of water, which seemed to have been accumulated in advance and hung there all the time; it also seemed to be thrown down by some violent reason, rather than falling down due to the natural movement of gravity. ⑤This allows people to guess that there will be a thick and tight block hanging at a place far away from the earth like the earth itself, and it will not fall down after being pushed by right and wrong.But on this point I can't really be sure.At the same time, it is from this, and from many other instances, that we are so poor in natural history that I am often compelled, in giving examples, to substitute mere hypotheses for definite instances. ①Fuller pointed out that when people don't know the law of acceleration force, the result must be inferred from the Peripatetic school's dogma that heavy objects go downward.The true explanation is this: Suppose a pipe is thrown through the center of the earth, and a body is thrown into it, and the body will oscillate between the entrance and the opposite mouth, that is, between two points on this side of the earth and on the other side of the earth; if there is no resistance in it Sexual medium, the swing will never stop.See "Calculus of the Infinitely Small" by Price Section 233 of the third volume.The theorem is proved there in a homogeneous sphere; the earth is not homogeneous, but the heterogeneity on the side of the center is almost in balance with the corresponding heterogeneity on the other side of the center, so the conclusion is also Almost true.However, if the influence of the resisting medium is taken into account, then the object will finally stop at the center after a very large number of swings. - translator ② Fleur pointed out that Bacon's own theory obviously said that it is not the so-called place that regulates the movement of light objects rising and heavy objects falling, but the sympathy or induction of objects to objects.In the article "Thema Coeli", there is a very eye-catching sentence at the beginning, which coincides with this point, and you can refer to it. Also, the phrase "desire to rise and fall" itself contains the concept of positive lightness. - translator ③Fuller pointed out that it is very strange that Bacon did not see that the moon is such a suitable example here, and he did not think about the real connection between the moon's orbit around the earth and the phenomenon of objects falling (that is, Bacon's so-called alliance or combination) . - translator ④In Gilberte's philosophy, the earth's magnetism and gravity are inseparable (see the third chapter of the second volume of "De Mundo Nostro Sublunari").In addition, the theory that the function of the earth or a magnet must be limited to a fixed orbital disk is found in many places (see the seventh chapter of the second volume of "De Magnete" and the attached definition table at the front of this book). Gilbert distinguishes between the disk of sex and the disk of copulation, the former being the whole space covered by any magnetic action. He affirms that the orbit of the magnetic nature extends straight to the moon, and says that the unevenness of the moon is affected by this (see "DeMundo", Book II, Chapter 19). ⑤ Fleur noted that for phenomena such as whirlwinds, water columns, and dust arrays, see pages 241 to 247 of "Meteorology" by Herschel.Heschel wrote: "This whirlwind on the sea causes a column of water, which is a very strange and sometimes dangerous phenomenon. The tall column looks like a cloud column, which goes from the sea to the cloud, magnificent and majestic. There are often several at once, sometimes straight and vertical, sometimes oblique and curved, but when you look closely, they are always spinning sharply. Below, the sea is violently agitated, jumping or boiling. indeed, at least in some episodes, the sea water seems to be actually lifted up in great quantities, and thrown about from great heights, as solid things are on land. It has therefore been supposed that this was done by means of Suction to lift the water out of the sea is obviously impossible." Fleur goes on to say that it is needless to say that Bacon's descriptions and explanations of these phenomena are very crude. - translator Take another example.Assume that the properties to be studied are rational inferences.As for the distinction between human reason and brute intelligence, it seems to be quite accurate.But there are also examples of animal activities that show that they also have a certain syllogic reasoning ability.There is an old story about a crow. When it was thirsty to the point of death in a severe drought, it saw water in a tree root cave, but the cave was too narrow for its body to enter. So it threw many small stones into it, and the water rose When he got up, he drank the water to his mouth.The story later became a proverb. Another example is visibility as a property to be studied.It is said that light is fundamental in visibility and gives people the power to see; color is secondary in visibility and cannot be seen without light, so it seems that it is only a variety or variation of light. elephant. ① This division seems to be quite accurate and secure. But here too there are examples of alliances viewed in two ways.On the one hand, there is a large amount of snow, ② which seems to be dominated by color, and light is generated from color; on the other hand, it is the flame of sulfur, ③ which is light and approaches color. ① The theory of this passage seems to be taken from Telesius, see Chapter 31 of Volume VII of "De Rerum Natura". Fleur said that the words and sentences used by the two did not quite correspond; but it is also possible that Bacon read the chapters of the seventh volume of the book and was inspired, so he came up with his own theory of optics. ② Fleur pointed out that this is not really an example of an alliance.Snow simply reflects all the light that falls on it, and is therefore more visible than other white objects that absorb only part of the light; but snow is not in any sense an independent source of light, like the sun or the sun. Like flames. - translator ③ Fleur pointed out that all flames, not only sulfurous flames, appear to be colored.As for its color, one depends on the properties and proportions of the various substances in the combustion, and on the other hand it also depends on the medium through which we see the flame. In this way, the flame is both a source of light and a colored thing in itself, so it is justified as an instance of union. - translator