On the loss of the voice through distance
Voices m, n and f diminishing over the distance a b, with three triangles
The leaf treats how the voice, or sound, loses power with distance, headed 'On the loss of the voice through distance'. Working from a diagram of three triangles labelled with the letters m, a, c, n, f, b, d, g, Leonardo reasons that two half-voices m and n at distance a b are together worth only one half-voice, while the doubled voice f loses a quarter of its power and remains as one and a half, so that at triple the distance (g) f is as strong as m and n were at a b. The text runs upside down relative to the diagram at the foot of the page.
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On the loss of the voice through distance
The heading announces a study of how the voice (sound) weakens as it travels away from its source, treated as a measurable physical diminishment.
Voices m, n and f over the distance a b
At distance a b the two voices m and n are each halved, so together they count only as one half-voice. The voice f, originally double, loses a quarter of its power and remains as one and a half, so at triple the distance g it equals m and n at a b.
Half-voices and the tripling of power
The reasoning is proportional: infinite half-voices at a distance still sum to only one half, and the comparison of doubled and halved powers yields the rule that f at triple the distance matches m and n at the original distance.
