Abstract
The Kaleidophone, invented by Charles Wheatstone (1802–1875) in 1827, is a delightful mixture of physics and art. A typical example of the device, dating from the latter part of the 19th century, is shown in Fig. 1. The upright rods, which are approximately 25 cm in length, are of variously circular, oval, square, and rectangular cross section, and are topped by shiny glass beads. When plucked, the rods give out a musical sound and the tips vibrate in complex patterns. These can be seen if the instrument is put into a dark room with a single bright light source; the inverted, virtual image of the source is seen as a bright spot on the bead. The difficulty here is that only a small number of people can view the figures traced out by the beads.
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