Forty-three experiments are detailed within this work, including the physical and chemical properties of air proving it has weight along with determining that a vacuum restricts the transmission of sound as well as the discovery on the permanent elasticity of air, which is necessary for supporting life and combustion.

The experiments outlined in this work eventually led to the discovery of Boyle's law, published in a later work. This first scientific publication by Boyle served as a significant event in the English scientific revolution. Half-title page, title page and folding copperplate engraving digitized from this volume.