Beauty and harmony

The farther researches we make into this admirable scene of things, the more beauty and harmony we see in them And the stronger and clearer convictions they give us, of the being, power and wisdom of the divine Architect, who has made all things to concur with a wonderful conformity, in carrying on, by various and innumerable combinations of matter, such a circulation of causes, and eflFects, as was necessary to the great ends of nature. 

The concept of symmetry is of ancient vintage and in many ways almost identical with the equally elusive concepts of beauty and harmony, i.e. beauty of form arising from balanced proportions. Although symmetry can be described in mathematically precise terms, symmetry in the physical world, like beauty1, never absolutely obeys the mathematical requirements of group theory even the most perfect crystal has a surface that spoils the symmetry. 

Carson s work on pesticides and her writings on the sea are two parts of the same message. In all, she wanted to communicate the wonder she felt for the natural world, a world she saw as harmonious, balanced, and beautiful. And, in each, she challenged her fellows to reverence nature and act responsibly to preserve and protect natural habitats. Disputing the... 

How fundamentally this point of view differs from that of modern science and how accordant it nevertheless is with the greater part of medieval logic in such matters, it is needless to emphasize. Plato places all the emphasis on deductive logic, and his employment of inductive logic is almost subconsciously applied, so little effort is made to control his notions of the causes of things on the basis of observed facts. He is mainly endeavoring to interpret the will of the creative power through his own ideas of harmony, beauty and beneficence. 

Simplicity is probably the least controversial trait that a molecule needs to be beautified in the minds of chemists, who have always been drawn to Platonic notions of beauty. And who could blame chemists for this line of thinking Simplicity is tied to the pleasing virtues of balance, symmetry, wholeness, and harmony. It is also tied to coherence and comprehension, which is tied to truth, which is tied to beauty. When a chemist examines a simple molecule, a network of these related concepts inevitably leaves him or her with a sense of pleasure and satisfaction. 

Your I.C. is in Libra, indicating that while you may be willing to fight in the professional world, you need a serene and harmonious home. Take the advice of Aries artist William Morris in The Beauty of Life Have... 

The quest for symmetry and harmony has, of course, contributed more than mere aesthetics in establishing the periodic table of the elements. Beauty and reason blend in it in a natural fashion. C. A. Coulson, theoretical chemist... 

Beauty of style and harmony and grace and good rhythm depend on simplicity. ... 

For the harmony of the world is made manifest in Form and Number, and the heart and soul and all poetry of Natural Philosophy are embodied in the concept of mathematical beauty. 1... 

Symmetry The word symmetry means the same measure, which denotes harmony and beauty of the parts. It also plays a very important role in molecular architecture and material properties. The study of molecular symmetry is through a branch of group theory, that is, the point groups of rotations that leave one point... 

Einstein, Albert, On Cosmic Religion, a Worship of the Harmony and Beauties of Nature That Became the Common Faith of Physicists. In Einstein, Albert, Cosmic Religion with Other Opinions and Aphorisms QAqw York Covici-Friede, 1931), 52. 

Talent and time were provided by this diverse group of young people. Their songs of praise rang through the beautiful setting at the newly constructed Fellowship Hall. To those in attendance, it was a time of inspiration and celebration. Please join me in recognizing Jacksonville Jn Harmony for their contribution to our community. 

This was not because their theories of matter were more advanced than the ideas of Democritus or of Empedocles. Indeed, in a very essential particular, their views were less in line with scientific advance than their predecessors. For Plato and Aristotle were not so much concerned with accounting for phenomena by the operation of properties inherent eternally in matter as they were in interpreting the phenomena of nature as the expression of design, harmony and beauty, as the expression of a directing will and intelligence. 

It is interesting that Weyl had a deep conviction that the harmony of nature could be expressed in mathematically beautiful laws and an outstanding characteristic of his work was his ability to unite previously unrelated subjects. He created a general theory of matrix representation of continuous groups and discovered that many of the regularities of quantum mechanics could be best understood by means of group theory. 

G. D. Birkhoff tried to give a mathematical theory of aesthetics by recognizing the complexity, C, and the order, O (i.e., its harmony and symmetry) that an object could be said to have. He then restated Hemsterhuis definition of the beautiful as that which gives us the greatest number of ideas in the shortest time as the relation aesthetic measure... 

The four qualities of Elements, cold heat, dryness and moisture, are we may say, the harmonic tones in Nature. They are not more contrary than the grave tone in music is to the acute but they are different, and separated by intervals, or middle tones, which connect the two extremes. Just as by these middle tones a very beautiful harmony may be composed, so Nature can combine the qualities of the Elements, so that from them may result a temperament47 which constitutes that of the Mixts. 

The word symmetry comes from the greek word symmetria and may be defined as harmony or balance in the proportions of parts to the whole. Symmetry is associated with beauty - with pleasing proportions or regularity in form, harmonious arrangement or regular repetition of certain characteristics. Nature shows many examples of symmetry plants, animals, crystals and man s culture always employed symmetry - in architecture, painting, sculpture and music. Four types of symmetry can be found ... 

We started this section with a reference to the ancient perception about the elements of Perfection and their role in the Universe. Here it seems timely to remember that the highest symbol of the Harmony and Unity in the World had been always represented in the shape of the Sphere. The repercussions of these beliefs can be found in all religions, very ancient and rather modern. Therefore it is hardly surprising to observe that the preparation of a nearly perfect spheroidal molecule, buckminsterfullerene 59, besides its overwhelming scientific importance, elicits a special excitement due simply to the intrinsic beauty of this structure and its appeal to the common perception of Harmony. 

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