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Curious History of Weights & Measures, The
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Format: Hardback
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Description
How long is an ell? What is the largest size of champagne bottle?
How do you measure the heat of a chilli pepper? Why is the depth of water measured in fathoms? And what is a cubit?
The Curious History of Weights & Measures tells the story of how we have come to quantify the world around us. Looking at everything from carats, pecks and pennyweights to firkins and baker's dozens through to modern science-based standards such as kilograms and kilometres, this book considers both what sparked the creation of myriad measures and why there were so many efforts to usher in standardisation.
Full of handy conversion charts and beautiful illustrations, The Curious History of Weights & Measures is a treasure trove of fun facts and intriguing stories about the calculations we use every day.
Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
The Curious History of Weights & Measures by Claire Cock-Starkey is described as a delightful book filled with intriguing and surprising facts on each page. It has been praised for being thoroughly enjoyable by readers such as Wynn Wheldon from The Spectator.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781851245796
Publisher: Bodleian Library
Format: Hardback
Date Published: 17 February 2023
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Bodleian Library
Illustration: 24 Illustrations, black and white
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Width: 118.0mm
Height: 184.0mm
Weight: 376g
Pages: 192
About the Author
Claire Cock-Starkey is a writer and editor. Recent books include Hyphens and Hashtags (2021) A Museum Miscellany (2019) and The Real McCoy and 149 Other Eponyms (2018).
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