ALS in German, signed “M. Planck,” four pages on two adjoining sheets, 5.5 x 8.5, July 27, 1901. Handwritten letter to Dr. Ludwik Silberstein discussing a potential submission to Annalen der Physik, the premier physics journal of the era; at this time, Planck was a member of the journal’s five-person editorial board. In part (translated): "I have read through your treatment of symbolic integrals of the electromagnetic equations with great interest, and even if I have not verified all the calculations, I have nonetheless become convinced that your essay sets out a series of thoughts that will perhaps prove to be very valuable for the future and is therefore suited for publication in the Annalen der Physik in any event. Since you also ask me for details about my opinion and even offer to allow me to make changes in your manuscript, however, I am also happy to indicate to you the main point in which I consider that your paper could still be improved: that is, a somewhat more precise restriction or limitation of the theorems you formulate, whose scope can easily be overestimated according to your presentation." Planck weighs in on the limitations of what Silberstein set forth, concluding: "You need more for your theory, namely that it can be expressed by a Taylor series." He suggests a revision before sending it directly to the journal's editor, Paul Drude. In fine condition, with tiny edge losses.
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