Fourth Dimension

Author(s)

• Charles Howard Hinton

"Mr Hinton tries to explain the theory of the fourth dimension so that the ordinary reasoning mind can get a grasp of what metaphysical mathematicians mean by it. If he is not altogether successful, it is not from want of clearness on his part, but because the whole theory comes as such an absolute shock to all one's preconceived ideas" - The Bristol Times (quoted within the book).

This book was published in 1912. The author is attempting to communicate a very complex interweaving of philosophy and mathematics, and it is often difficult to follow his train of thought. However, it is hard to refute his idea of a four dimensional universe passing through and, in a way, creating our three dimensional one.

For sections 1-9, the reader attempted to describe the illustrations in the text, but as the pictures were getting more complex, a separate PDF file of illustrations was created, copied from the pages of the book. It can be downloaded from the catalog page on archive.org or via the link "Extracted illustrations of the book" on the left side below. (Summary by Peter Yeasley)

1. Preface; Chapter 1 - Four Dimensional Space
2. Chapter 2 - The Analogy of a Plane World
3. Chapter 3 - The Significance of a Fourth Dimensional Existence
4. Chapter 4, part 1 - The First Chapter in the History of Four Space
5. Chapter 4, part 2 - The First Chapter in the History of Four Space
6. Chapter 5, part 1 - The Second Chapter in the History of Four Space
7. Chapter 5, part 2 - The Second Chapter in the History of Four Space
8. Chapter 5, part 3 - The Second Chapter in the History of Four Space
9. Chapter 6, part 1 - The Higher World
10. Chapter 6, part 2 - The Higher World
11. Chapter 7 - The Evidence for a Fourth Dimension
12. Chapter 8, part 1 - The Use of Four Dimensions in Thought
13. Chapter 8, part 2 - The Use of Four Dimensions in Thought
14. Chapter 8, part 3 - The Use of Four Dimensions in Thought
15. Chapter 9, part 1 - Application to Kant's Theory of Experience
16. Chapter 9, part 2 - Application to Kant's Theory of Experience
17. Chapter 10, part 1 - A Four-Dimensional Figure
18. Chapter 10, part 2 - A Four-Dimensional Figure
19. Chapter 11, part 1 - Nomenclature and Analogies ...
20. Chapter 11, part 2 - Nomenclature and Analogies ...
21. Chapter 12 - The Simplest Four-Dimensional Solid
22. Chapter 13, part 1 - Remarks on the Figures
23. Chapter 13, part 2 - Remarks on the Figures
24. Chapter 14, part 1 - A Recapitulation and Extension of the Physical Argument
25. Chapter 14, part 2 - A Recapitulation and Extension of the Physical Argument
26. Appendix 1, part 1 - The Models
27. Appendix 1, part 2 - The Models
28. Appendix 2, part 1 - A Language of Space
29. Appendix 2, part 2 - A Language of Space