Am. Philosophical Society
Titles appearing in SciTech Book News — December 2007
Alhacen on the principles of reflection; a critical edition, with English translation and commentary, of books 4 and 5 of Alhacen's De Aspectibus; 2v.
Smith, A. Mark. (Transactions of the American Philosophical Society; v.96, pts. 2 & 3)
Am. Philosophical Society, ©2006 697 p. $40.00 QC353
0-87169-962-1
Alhacen's Latin translation differs considerably from the original Arabic Kitab al-Manazir by Ibn al-Haytham, but it was the Latin that was the most important text on optics through the Middle Ages, so an edition and English translation of that is much more useful to historians of science and historians in general. Having edited and translated books 1-3, which deal with direct visual perception, Smith here continues the job with books 4 and 5, which deal with reflection. The first volume contains the introduction and Latin text; the second contains the translation, the bibliography, and the several indexes. The two volumes are paged consecutively. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
