Basic Books
Measure of the Earth: The Enlightenment Expedition That Reshaped Our World
Key Metrics
- Larrie D Ferreiro
- Basic Books
- Paperback
- 9780465063819
- 8.2 X 5.5 X 1.1 inches
- 0.85 pounds
- Science > History
- English
Secure TransactionBook Description
In Measure of the Earth, award-winning science writer Larrie D. Ferreiro tells the full story of the Geodesic Mission to the Equator for the very first time.It was an age when Europe was torn between two competing conceptions of the world: the followers of Ren� Descartes argued that the Earth was elongated at the poles, even as IsaacNewton contended that it was flattened. A nation that could accurately determine the planet's shape could securely navigate its oceans, giving it great military and imperial advantages.Recognizing this, France and Spain organized a joint expedition to colonial Peru, Spain's wealthiest kingdom.Armed with the most advanced surveying and astronomical equipment, they would measure a degree of latitude at the Equator, which when compared with other measurements would reveal the shape of the world.But what seemed to be a straightforward scientific exercise was almost immediately marred by a series of unforeseen catastrophes, as the voyagers found their mission threatened by treacherous terrain, a deeply suspicious populace, and their own hubris.
A thrilling tale of adventure, political history, and scientific discovery, Measure of the Earth recounts the greatest scientific expedition of the Enlightenment through the eyes of the men who completed it -- pioneers who overcame tremendous adversity to traverse the towering Andes Mountains in order to discern the Earth's shape. In the process they also opened the eyes of Europe to the richness of South America and paved the way for scientific cooperation on a global scale.
Author Bio
Larrie D. Ferreiro is a naval architect and historian. He trained and worked as a naval architect in the U.S., British, and French navies and the U.S. Coast Guard, and has served as technical expert for the International Maritime Organization. He has a Ph.D. in the History of Science and Technology from Imperial College, London.
Ferreiro teaches history and engineering at George Mason University in Virginia and the Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey. He is the author of Measure of the Earth: The Enlightenment Expedition That Reshaped Our World and Ships and Science: The Birth of Naval Architecture in the Scientific Revolution, 1600-1800. He lives with his wife and their sons in Virginia.
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