In 1760 the first edition of the Traite d’optique sur la gradation de la lumiere of Pierre Bouguer was published posthumously. Bouguer (1698-1758), French mathematician, professor of hydrography, and author of works on the theory of navigation, can also be considered the inventor of photometry, and the Traite was his definitive word on the subject. It has become one of the classic treatises of science, but even in French has long been unavailable. The last part of the work is remarkable for having anticipated the modern theory of the visibility of objects in a horizontal direction through the atmosphere.
Dr. Middleton’s translation is accompanied by explanatory notes and a biographical and critical introduction. The book will be of interested to those working in the field of optics and to students of the history of science.