A Statistical Theory of Liquids. III

Theories of Liquid Viscosity.

“…This theory, due to Landau and Khalatnikov (261,262,293,294,295,296), provides an extremely interesting case study in scientific method; it may indicate a way out of the difficulties just discussed, though its history also shows the strength of the pressures toward "atomizing" any macroscopic or semi-macroscopic theory. Another example is Jaffé's theory of liquids (251), in which several properties including viscosity are deduced from a minimum number of hypotheses and parameters. Overshadowed by the more ambitious (if ultimately less successful) efforts of Kirkwood (270,273,551) and of Born and Green (58), this theory received little notice from physicists; and since it did not cater to current fashion by linking its hypotheses to molecular mechanisms, it was also ignored by chemists.…”