Acoustics

societies, and so forth—to look through every volume from the oldest to the newest in order to discover which subjects he wishes to work on have already been treated therein. I have done this myself while traveling to various libraries, though much may still have escaped my notice. Thus, it would indisputably be a very useful undertaking if someone with the proper diligence, expertise, and opportunity to use an excellent library were to provide a catalog, organized by subject matter, of all the physical and mathematical treatises scattered throughout the writings of various academies of sciences and other collections. This would allow one to immediately obtain a general overview of what has already been accomplished in every field. However, it must not be a mere list of titles; the content must also be briefly stated, and a paper that deals with several subjects must be cited under multiple headings, otherwise much might still remain unused. For example, from the mere title of the treatise by Leonhard Euler A pioneering Swiss mathematician and physicist (1707–1783) On the motion of air in tubes original: "de motu aëris in tubis", one could hardly guess that it also contains much instruction regarding echoes and the propagation of sound in the open air. It is to be expected that the Repertory of commentaries published by literary societies, arranged according to the order of disciplines original: "Repertorium commentationum a societatibus literariis editarum, secundum disciplinarum ordinem digestum"—currently being published by Professor Reuss in Göttingen, of which the first part concerning general natural history and zoology has now appeared—will also remedy this deficiency in the physical and mathematical fields.

Wherever the observations of others have been used in this work, I have cited them every time, so as not to appropriate anything belonging to another. However, since anyone who has successfully endeavored to discover something new does not like to have those discoveries disputed, I hope no one will find it blameworthy if I indicate here what I consider to be my own literary property The author is referring to intellectual property or original contributions. To this belongs the plan, according to—