Climbing stairs and the gathering centre of an eddy
Resting the hands on the knees eases the legs; light things collect in a whirlpool
A red-chalk figure of a man climbing a flight of steps (labelled a, b) illustrates a note on effort: resting the hands on the knees relieves the sinews below the knees of the strain that the arms then take up. Below, a small drawing of an eddy accompanies the observation that light objects gather at the centre of a whirlpool, and hence at its bottom.
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Hands on the knees relieve the legs when climbing
When climbing stairs, if you rest your hands on your knees, all the effort taken up by the arms is removed from the sinews below the knees. The figure on the steps is marked a and b.
Light things gather at the centre of an eddy
In the middle of an eddy ('retroso') all light things are gathered together, that is, at the bottom. A small swirling drawing accompanies the note.