Weighing the World The Quest to Measure the Earth

by Danson, Edwin

• ISBN13: 9780195181692
• ISBN10: 0195181697
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-12-15
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

"In a global tour de force, Weighing the World recounts the 100-year quest to discover the enigmatic natural energy - the curious capability that mountains have to bend gravity - and of an extraordinary experiment that transformed our understanding of the world. Written to appeal to general readers interested in popular science and geographical intrigues, this book will also be greeted enthusiastically by surveyors, historians of science, physicists, teachers, and other specialist audiences."--BOOK JACKET.

Table of Contents

1 Cannot Be Wrong	3	(3)
2 The Titan King	6	(11)
3 A Calm and Gentle Character	17	(12)
4 The Galileo of France	29	(8)
5 Extreme Science	37	(10)
6 Robberies and Depredations	47	(12)
7 A Magnificent Military Sketch	59	(9)
8 Persons Well Versed	68	(13)
9 Very Expert in His Business	81	(9)
10 A Passage with My Horse	90	(9)
11 Frankenstein and Other Experiments	99	(7)
12 A Remarkable Hill	106	(9)
13 Important Observations	115	(14)
14 So Great a Noise	129	(12)
15 The Attraction of Mountains	141	(14)
16 The Best of the Position	155	(9)
17 Distinguished Merit	164	(12)
18 Late by a Whole Year	176	(18)
19 Geodetic Experiments	194	(9)
20 I Know It Will Answer	203	(9)
21 Offering Violence to Nature	212	(11)
22 A Meritorious Foreigner	223	(9)
23 Men Worthy of Confidence	232	(10)
24 Irregularities We Have Discovered	242	(13)
Appendix: Explanations and Definitions	255	(10)
Notes	265	(12)
Bibliography	277	(6)
Index	283