Editing Pathological science (section)

===N-rays===
{{main|N ray}}

Langmuir's discussion of [[N ray|N-rays]] has led to their traditional characterization as an instance of pathological science.<ref>{{cite book |title= Constructivism in science education: a philosophical examination |chapter= Social constructivism, the Gospel of Science, and the Teaching of Physics |author-first= Helge |author-last=Kragh |author-link=Helge Kragh| editor-first= Michael R. |editor-last=Matthews |editor-link=Michael R. Matthews |edition= illustrated |publisher= [[Springer Science+Business Media|Springer Netherlands]] |year= 1998 |isbn= 978-0792350330 | page= 134 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=iQtlWBBXKIoC }}</ref>

In 1903, [[Prosper-René Blondlot]] was working on [[X-ray]]s (as were other physicists of the era) and noticed a new visible radiation that could penetrate [[aluminium]]. He devised experiments in which a barely visible object was illuminated by these N-rays, and thus became "more visible". Blondlot claimed that N-rays were causing a small visual reaction, too small to be seen under normal illumination, but just visible when most normal light sources were removed and the target was just barely visible to begin with.

N-rays became the topic of some debate within the science community. After a time, American physicist [[Robert W. Wood]] decided to visit Blondlot's lab, which had moved on to the physical characterization of N-rays. An experiment passed the rays from a 2&nbsp;mm slit through an aluminum [[Prism (optics)|prism]], from which he was measuring the [[refractive index|index of refraction]] to a precision that required measurements accurate to within 0.01&nbsp;mm. Wood asked how it was possible that he could measure something to 0.01&nbsp;mm from a 2&nbsp;mm source, a physical impossibility in the propagation of any kind of wave. Blondlot replied, "That's one of the fascinating things about the N-rays. They don't follow the ordinary laws of science that you ordinarily think of." Wood then asked to see the experiments being run as usual, which took place in a room required to be very dark so the target was barely visible. Blondlot repeated his most recent experiments and got the same results—despite the fact that Wood had reached over and covertly sabotaged the N-ray apparatus by removing the prism.<ref name="Langmuir1953"/><ref name="Wood1904">{{Cite journal |last=Wood |first=R. W. |author-link=R. W. Wood |date=29 September 1904|title=The N-Rays |journal=[[Nature (journal)|Nature]] |volume=70 |issue=1822 |pages=530–531 |doi=10.1038/070530a0 |quote=After spending three hours or more in witnessing various experiments, I am not only unable to report a single observation which appeared to indicate the existence of the rays, but left with a very firm conviction that the few experimenters who have obtained positive results, have been in some way deluded. A somewhat detailed report of the experiments which were shown to me, together with my own observations, may be of interest to the many physicists who have spent days and weeks in fruitless efforts to repeat the remarkable experiments which have been described in the scientific journals of the past year.|bibcode = 1904Natur..70..530W |s2cid=4063030 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1429443 }}</ref>