Abstract
The stability of a heavy top, containing a cylindrical cavity partly full of liquid, for small displacements from the sleeping position is studied. It is shown theoretically that instability can occur when any one of the periods of free oscillation of the liquid, which are doubly infinite in number, is sufficiently near to the period of nutation of the empty top. In experiments carried out by Prof. Ward, only the two principal instabilities could be distinguished.

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