Re: Testing Darwinism

Dave Probert (probert@cs.ucsb.edu)
Fri, 17 Nov 1995 10:18:48 -0800

> What sort of "picture" of the atoms in marcasite do you refer to Glenn--are
> they direct images or some indirect visualization such as an Xray
> diffraction? I didn't think that the resolution of electron microscopes was
> sufficient (especially in 1967) to directly visualize atoms. If atoms can
> be directly visualized, it may still not satisfy Comte if he were alive
> today, because he may not accept the existence of electrons and subatomic
> particles unless they too could be seen.

I thought the highest resolution for looking at atoms came from
these microscopes that drag a stylus over the surface (a technology
developed and marketed by a UCSB physicist, thank you).

Plus I have seen pictures (in Sci Am I think) of IBM spelled out
with atoms.

So there seem to be abundant representations of atoms as seen
from the outside, (assuming that seeing by Braille is acceptable).

Of course without seeing the internal structure of that atom, some
might still be skeptical.

The atoms seen are of course of the larger variety. I don't think
anybody has been taking pictures of hydrogen.

--Dave