It explains also how electrons produce artificial light.
The electron twits man upon his ridiculously wasteful processes of obtaining artificial light.
In the preceding chapter I have been telling you how we electrons produce waves in the æther ocean. I pointed out that if we make the waves follow each other at too slow or too fast a rate they fail to affect man's eyes.
It may seem strange to you that only a very small range of our æther waves should affect man's visionary apparatus. Of course this limitation lies beyond our province; we can produce endless variety of æther waves—it is man's organs which fail to appreciate the bulk of these. However, there is plenty of variety in the sensations which we can produce in man. If we make the waves follow each other at a certain speed, man says he has the sensation of red. If we move faster, he speaks of orange-colour, and as we increase our speed he names his further sensations as yellow, green, blue, and violet. Then if we combine all these waves—that is, if we produce them all at one time—he says he has the sensation of white. If we produce none of these waves, he calls the result black.
While we electrons are very versatile, our actions are dependent in a great measure upon circumstances. For instance, if an electron is acting as a satellite to one particular kind of atom, its rate of revolution around that atom may be very different from that of an electron similarly attached to another kind of atom. We electrons are all identical, but the speed of revolution is determined by the kind of atom. The reason is very simple; electrons revolve around some atoms at a much greater distance than they would around other atoms. Those making only the smaller orbits not only get around their atoms in less time, but they are also travelling at a greater pace. It is this fact which enables the electrons to produce the various wave-lengths which stimulate the different colour sensations in the brain of man.
I think you will have no difficulty in seeing how it is that we come to produce such a variety of wave-lengths—in other words, how we are able to make the waves follow each other more or less rapidly. You will understand that we do not produce colours; we merely make various waves in the æther, and these waves excite the colour sensations in man. I mention this simple fact, because I hear many people speaking of our æther waves as "coloured rays," which, of course, is quite a ridiculous description.
Suppose some of those waves which give rise to the red sensation happen to fall upon a lump of matter which contains only electrons capable of producing waves that affect the green sensation. What will happen? There will be no response, and the object, although viewed by "red light," will appear black.
If an object, such as the white paper upon which my scribe is recording my story, contains a variety of atoms with electrons capable of revolving at all the different rates which produce colour sensations, then when "white light" falls upon the object it appears white (all the colour sensations combined). If, on the other hand, a "red light" only falls upon it, then only the electrons capable of responding to that rate of wave will be set in motion, and the object will appear red, and so on with the other rates of æther waves.
So far I have been telling you what happens when different waves of light fall upon us. Now I shall endeavour to explain how man has caused us to produce artificial light. At present all man's methods in this direction are dependent upon making some substance so hot that it becomes incandescent. Even his most modern methods seem to us to be ridiculously wasteful and most roundabout. I shall speak only of the electric glow lamp, as I have had some experience in connection with this.