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----- Original Message -----
From: 
To: 
Sent: Thursday, September 25, 2003 5:56 AM
Subject: Re: Looking for a book title


>> There are two other recent geography books that I've been considering and
> would be interested if others have enjoyed: Andro Linklater's _Measuring
> America_ and John Keay's _The Great Arc_.
>
>  -- Peter

I have "The Great Arc", a historical account of a 50 year long task to
measure1600 miles along an arc of a meridian in India in the 1800's. The
topic is rivetting, but the book is a bit of a slow read. The author is a
historian and correspondingly spends a lot of time on the personalities and
clashes between them, and the physical difficulties faced by the surveyors
in the field. Not as much time as I would have liked on the instruments
used, the techniques used, and the scientific significance of the
task....especially the importance of the task to furthering understanding of
the shape of the earth. Still, a worthwhile read, and I have found myself
going back to it from time to time

Lee Martin

   

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