DOCS.
294,
295
OCTOBER
1911
213
to be
quite
interesting.[4]
In the meantime
I
study
the
theory of elasticity
a
little
bit:
I must
conduct classes in
it,
and
the
students
shouldn't
see right away
how little
a university
physicist
knows
about these
things.
As
soon as
I
get
settled
down
a
little and
am
done
with
some
numerical calculations
for
the
work
on
turbulence-which
will
perhaps
become
my
Habilitation
thesis-I'll
apply
myself
to
the
opalescence.
But if the matter
is
very
urgent
to
you,
don't
concern
yourself
with
me
but
go
ahead and
do it with
someone
else!
At
the
moment
I
am
still
deeper
into
physical
than
into
mechanical
problems.
Meyer[5]
is
very
nice to
me,
and
now
and
then
we
also
talk
politics.
I
am
corresponding
with
Eucken[6]
about
specific
heat;
but he
doesn't
seem
to be
so
firm in the
saddle when
it
comes
to
theory
as
he
is
in his
experiments.
Incidentally,
I will have
a
lot
of
time for
myself,
because I
am
only a
half-time
assistant.[7]
I
think
it will be
quite
healthy
for
me
to
have
to
sort out
the
difficulties all
by
myself
rather than
simply
running to
you
and
having everything
explained to
me.
I do not
expect
replies to
my
letters.
But
please
send
me
your
reprints
and inform
me
occasionally
about the
important
events in
your
life,
e.g.,
how the business
of
the
job-
offer
ended.[8]
And
if
you
feel like
being especially
nice to
me,
present
me
with
a
picture
of
yourself
so
that
it
can
be
enthroned
on
my
desk
along
with Sommerfeld.[9]
The
only
picture I
have from
the
whole
family
is
Eduard's, which
is
very
precious,
but
not
representative enough
for this
purpose.
I'll
soon
send
you
the book about humor.
Warmest
greetings
to
you
and
your
family,
and
to
other
friends from
Prague!
Your
L.
Hopf
295. To Willem
Julius
Prague,
18
October
1911
Highly
esteemed
Colleague:
Please
forgive me
for
not
writing
to
you
until
now.[1]
I
was
out
of
town
for three
weeks
(first
in
Karlsruhe
at
the
Naturforscherversammlung,
then
in Zurich,
where
I
collaborated
at
a
summer
course).[2]
I
already
informed
you
that
some
people
there
would like to have
me
appointed
to
the
Polytechnic,[3]
but
I do not
think
it
very likely
that
they
will
be able to
carry
this
through.
Nevertheless,
you
will
understand
if
I
ask
you
for
the
sake of
my
fellow-citizens[4]
to allow
me
a
few
more
weeks
for
my
final decision.
It would be
a
great pleasure
for
me
to
become
your colleague,
and I
am
convinced
that
we
would
quickly develop
a
lively
interchange
and take
pleasure
in
each other's
company.
I
am very glad
that
I
misunderstood
you
regarding
the
corona
lines,[5]
for this
puts
to rest
my
main
misgiving
about
my
theoretical
conception.
But
it
is
clear that
my
theory
can
only yield
a
rough
average
for
the
displacement;
in
my
view
as
well,
the finer
details
must be
explained
in
a purely
optical
way.
Displacement
due
to
pressure
cannot be
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