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III.—On the Rigidity of the Earth, and on Colonel Burrard's Theory of the Himalayas
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 May 2009
Extract
In the April number of this Magazine a review appeared of Colonel Burrard's memoir on the origin of the Himalaya Mountains. The writer, Sir T. H. Holland, in it refers to a paper of mine originally published in the Phil. Mag., and subsequently in an amended form as Appendix No. 1, 1905, Indian Survey Papers, professional vol. xviii. I shall be glad to make a few remarks upon the subject. After duly crediting me with having partially anticipated the results now obtained by the Survey, by calculating the deflection of the plumb-line in North India which would follow from my theory of mountain compensation by a ‘root’ extending to a depth of about 29 miles, the reviewer continues— “The variations now observed are, however, more violent than those expected by Mr. Fisher, for the northerly deflections of the plumb-line decrease to zero at a distance of about 15 instead of over 60 miles from the visible foot of the hills.” I would reply that I have not calculated the deflection at 15 miles, and it is not safe to guess a priori what it would be. The numerical calculation for a given distance is tedious, and I could not now undertake it.
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References
page 250 note 1 Survey of India, professional paper No. 12, Calcutta, 1912.Google Scholar
page 250 note 2 Phil. Mag., 017, 1904.Google Scholar
page 250 note 3 In the Phil. Mag., p. 24, in the formula for the attraction of the plateau, there is a misprint. After the first bracket insert x.Google Scholar
page 251 note 1 Nature, vol. lxxxi, p. 427, 10 7, 1909.Google Scholar.
page 252 note 1 See Colonel Burrard's, paper, Phil. Trans., ser. A, vol. ccv, 1905. Also Nature, vol. xci, p. 143, 1905.Google Scholar
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