false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1185401318m/1576347.jpg 1576347 1 Measures are the subject of this unusual book, in which Robert Tavernor offers a fascinating account of the various measuring systems human beings have devised over two millennia. Tavernor urges us to look beyond the notion that measuring is strictly a scientific activity, divorced from human concerns. Instead, he sets measures and measuring in cultural context and shows how deeply they are connected to human experience and history.<br> <br>The book explores changing attitudes toward measure, focusing on key moments in art, sculpture, architecture, philosophy, and the development of scientific thought. It encompasses the journey of Western civilization from the construction of the Great Pyramid to the first manned flight to the moon. Beginning with a review of early measuring standards that referred to the feet and inches of ideal bodies, the book then tracks how Enlightenment interest in a truly scientific system of measure led to the creation of the metric system. This &#8220;rational&#8221; approach to measure in turn has inspired artists, architects, writers, and others to seek a balance that takes the human story into account. Tavernor concludes with a discussion of measure in our own time, when space travel presents to humankind a direct encounter with the unfathomable measure of the universe.<br><br> 1569087 24 9 2007 Smoot's Ear: The Measure of Humanity total:3|5:1|3:2| 3 11 5 2 3 0 false false Thu Apr 03 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Aug 23 13:54:23 -0700 2007 Thu Apr 03 19:52:54 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Mar 12 19:52:57 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 01 09:51:47 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Sun Jul 05 07:31:26 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 05 07:31:26 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Mon Jul 28 17:03:56 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 28 17:03:59 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Thu May 08 12:44:32 -0700 2008 Thu May 08 12:44:32 -0700 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=1576347