Literary notes about Density (AI summary)
The term “density” is employed with remarkable versatility in literature, serving both as a precise scientific measure and as a richly evocative metaphor. In scientific and technical texts, authors use density to denote exact measurements and relationships—for example, specific values of liquids and solids are recorded with precision ([1], [2], [3], [4]), while Newton and Jefferson explore density’s role in physical phenomena, such as the behavior of vapors or fluids ([5], [6], [7], [8]). In contrast, literary works harness the word’s qualitative power to set a scene or evoke emotion; Dickens and Hugo, for instance, describe the physical obscurity provided by the “density” of shrubbery or night to create a sense of mystery and concealment ([9], [10]). Similarly, density is used to depict the compactness of social groups or natural landscapes, underlining how tightly elements—whether people or trees—are packed together ([11], [12], [13], [14]). This dual usage, spanning rigorous scientific discourse and vibrant narrative imagery, highlights the adaptability of “density” in enriching both analytical and creative writing.
- The seeds yield on distillation a yellow essential oil with a strong and disagreeable odor, density 0.908.
— from The Medicinal Plants of the Philippines by T. H. Pardo de Tavera - It has an agreeable odor resembling that of sweet almonds, its density is 0.9148 at 25°
— from The Medicinal Plants of the Philippines by T. H. Pardo de Tavera - Its density is 0.961, it melts at 30°–33°, and solidifies at 25°.
— from The Medicinal Plants of the Philippines by T. H. Pardo de Tavera - A dark oil is expressed from the seeds, its density 0.954 and its solidifying point 5° above zero.
— from The Medicinal Plants of the Philippines by T. H. Pardo de Tavera - Density of vapors.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - I say therefore, that the Square of the Line BR, and by consequence the refracting Force of the Body, is very nearly as the density of the same Body.
— from Opticks : by Isaac Newton - Density of projectiles.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - And for these Reasons the Density of fluid Mediums is very nearly proportional to their Resistance.
— from Opticks : by Isaac Newton - In such condition, Mrs. Sparsit stood hidden in the density of the shrubbery, considering what next?
— from Hard Times by Charles Dickens - Invisible combatants were entrenched at every corner of the street; snares of the sepulchre concealed in the density of night.
— from Les Misérables by Victor Hugo - The cause of their apparent rarity is to be sought in the sameness and density of the thousand miles of forest which constitute their dwelling-place.
— from Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll - It required a high population density to supply them, and while Kardon was integrated its population was scarcely more than two hundred million.
— from The Lani People by Jesse F. Bone - A density of population implies a severer struggle for existence, and a consequent repulsion of elements brought into too close contact.
— from Sybil, Or, The Two Nations by Earl of Beaconsfield Benjamin Disraeli - But natural forest do not grow in rows, whereas they do generally possess the quality of density or compactness.] 18.
— from The Art of War by active 6th century B.C. Sunzi