Do you know?: The difference between a dash, a pinch, a smidgen, and a drop? How many points in a pica, or picas in an inch? The difference between a foot, a manual foot and a natural foot? How much is in a Balthazar vs. a Melchior? What classic American writer took his name from a measurement? What is the shortest length of time and the smallest possible distance? Featuring over 300 units of measurement, their origins, their history and their usage, A Measure of All Things is a compelling look at the means humankind has used to define and impose order upon the world that surrounds us all. Book jacket."Ever wonder what a cubit really is? How much is in a hoghead? How many rods are in an acre? Or the difference between a light year and a parse?" "Ever wonder where all these terms and formats came from, who uses them and in what context? Well, wonder no more." "A Measure of All things is a look at the way things concrete and theoretical are and have been measured from the earliest times to the modern day. Ranging from the history of measurement systems to the different classes of measurements, A Measure of All Things covers the origins of the various units of measurement, the ways in which they developed and changed over time, and the many connections between them."--BOOK JACKET.
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