Identifier: lifeworkatgreatp03smyt (find matches)
Title: Life and work at the Great Pyramid during the months of January, February, March, and April, A.D. 1865 : with a discussion of the facts ascertained
Year: 1867 (1860s)
Authors: Smyth, C. Piazzi (Charles Piazzi), 1819-1900
Subjects: Pyramids Excavations (Archaeology) Pyramids of Giza (Egypt) Great Pyramid (Egypt)
Publisher: Edinburgh, Edmonston and Douglas
Contributing Library: Robarts - University of Toronto
Digitizing Sponsor: University of Toronto

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too many to dis-tinguish by the eye in a moment; but five serveseither purpose. The same feature of advantage isfurther found when subdivisions have to be madewith the eye; so that if we have a scale dividedmechanically to tenths of inches, and require toread off to hundredths,—i.e., to subdivide each tenthinto ten parts again,—a mistake of one of those tenthsmay often be made by inexperienced persons mea-suring inhaste ; but if the same scale be dividedmechanically into half-tenths, so that the estimatorhas only optically to divide each space into fiveparts, there is hardly any possibility of erring then,to the extent of any one of those parts. Hence we may see, that there is reaUy somethingnoteworthy in the Pyramid system, and increasingits adaptability to all kinds of metrology, even inthis one feature of making so much as it does ofthe number 5, as well as the number 10 ; and wetrust that sailors will take kindly to the fact. Atall events, in this manner they may have, if they
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SECT, v.) STANDARDS OF TIME. 215 choose, between the eight cardinal points, fivesmaller points, each equal to a whole number ofPyramid degrees taken in groups of 25. Andshould they desire, as doubtless the best amongthem will, to steer closer still than to a single point,—if they will divide each of these Pyramid pointsinto five parts, these will still be equal to a wholenumber of Pyramid degrees, or 5 degrees each;and will express very nearly as small a quantity innature, as the troublesome half of a quarter of apoint on their present system. While a furtherdivision still by five, will bring them to Pyramiddegrees; and enable seamen then to speak in fulland sympathizing community of terms, with all whomake use of angular mensuration in its highest andstrictest form. See Plate v., for these things graphically repre-sented. SECTION V. STANDARDS OF TIME. In Eome de Flsles metrological tables, the de-partment of time-measures occupies a considerablespace,—illustrating thereby the wid

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