Fire Within the Eye By David A. Park (review)

Abstract

oping the atomic force microscope. Moreover, a number of investigators have been able to move atoms from place to place using the scanning tunneling microscope, one of the most notable examples being Donald Eigler's positioning of 35 xenon atoms on a nickel surface so as to spell "IBM," his employer at the IBM Research Laboratory in Almadén, California. On a personal note, I began with the history of atomism as an academic exercise in college and am now using the atomic force microscope for biomedical investigations . Perhaps the history of the idea never left me. I recommend this book most enthusiastically. This is a fascinating and eminently readable account of modern atomism, the indivisible becoming divisible and the invisible becoming visible. The relationship among science, theology, and philosophy is a fascinating tale of humans , their humanity, and their unquenchable interest in discovery. Morton F. Arnsdorf, M.D. University of Chicago Fire Within the Eye. By David A. Park. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1997. Pp. 550. $29.95. Imagine for a moment an elaborate dinner party, in which the host has taken great pains to prepare an evening that will be an enjoyable and memorable experience for all who attend. The guests are gracefully attired. The venue is carefully chosen and richly decorated. The meal progresses languidly, over the entire evening . Each course is meticulously prepared and artfully presented. Only the freshest ingredients are used, only the finest wines are served. The guest who has come mentally prepared for this gustatory experience savors every delicious mouthful from the aperitif to the dessert. This is not the event for someone in a hurry to finish dinner and get home. For the reader who seeks a detailed history of research in the visual sciences, author David Park in Fire Within the Eye is host to an historical feast. Beginning with the earliest accounts of philosophical theories on light and vision, he meticulously recounts the progression of electromagnetic science. He begins with a discussion of the influence of the Greeks and Romans, from there moves eastward toward Egypt, and then to France and Italy. Eventually his discussion travels to the modern scientific era of Germany, Great Britain, and the United States. Throughout his presentation, Park reminds his reader of the prevailing religious, cultural, and philosophical milieu in which various researchers were working. He thereby gives his reader a sociopolitical context in which to view the progression and maturation of vision and light science. HORS D OEUVRES AND APERITIF The experience begins shortly after the reader arrives for Park's feast. The guest immediately notices the environment in which he has arrived: he observes the art on the walls, the weave of the carpet, the pattern of the upholstery. Other guests arrive, they meet and mingle; conversations are begun and ideas are introduced. 444 I Book Reviews Park introduces his reader to some of the earliest philosopher/scientists investigating light and vision, as well as to the ideological climate of the time. He begins in the middle of the 5th century BC, when the concepts of light, space, matter, and creation were inextricably linked. Philosophers such as Empedocles, Leucippus, Democratus, and Aristotle successively wrestled with theories and definitions of atoms and space, and the relationship between them and God. Empedocles (c. 495-435 bc) believed that matter and light were eternal, and that only their forms were subject to change. From this, Leucippus (c. 450 bc) conceived of matter as formed images made up of atoms that move at very high speeds. Yet, these atoms maintain their general position such that what is seen as an apparently stationary object is in reality rapidly changing. Aristotle (384-322 bc) gave an early definition of light as an entity that activates all substances. His limitation, however, was his inability to conceive of light as having the speed necessary to explain the rapidity with which one sees distant targets. None of these early thinkers, however, delved into the physiology of vision. It was Galen (c. 130-200) who studied the anatomy of the eye and suggested that it was the lens that was the sensory organ of vision. He believed that the retina and optic nerve were...