PortadaGruposCharlasMásPanorama actual
Buscar en el sitio
Este sitio utiliza cookies para ofrecer nuestros servicios, mejorar el rendimiento, análisis y (si no estás registrado) publicidad. Al usar LibraryThing reconoces que has leído y comprendido nuestros términos de servicio y política de privacidad. El uso del sitio y de los servicios está sujeto a estas políticas y términos.

Resultados de Google Books

Pulse en una miniatura para ir a Google Books.

Cargando...

Circumference: Eratosthenes and the Ancient Quest to Measure the Globe

por Nicholas Nicastro

MiembrosReseñasPopularidadValoración promediaMenciones
11622235,020 (3.57)14
How do you measure the size of the planet you're standing on?   "Circumference" is the story of what happened when one man asked himself that very question. Nicholas Nicastro brings to life one of history's greatest experiments when an ancient Greek named Eratosthenes first accurately determined the distance around the spherical earth. In this fascinating narrative history, Nicastro takes a look at a deceptively simple but stunning achievement made by one man, millennia ago, with only the simplest of materials at his disposal. How was he able to measure the land at a time when distance was more a matter of a shrug and a guess at the time spent on a donkey's back? How could he be so confident in the assumptions that underlay his calculations: that the earth was round and the sun so far away that its rays struck the ground in parallel lines? Was it luck or pure scientific genius? Nicastro brings readers on a trip into a long-vanished world that prefigured modernity in many ways, where neither Eratosthenes' reputation, nor the validityof his method, nor his leadership of the Great Library of Alexandria were enough to convince all his contemporaries about the dimensions of the earth. Eratosthenes' results were debated for centuries until he was ultimately vindicated almost 2000 years later, during the great voyages of exploration. "Circumference" is a compelling scientific detective story that transports readers back to a time when humans had no idea how big their world was--and the fate of a man who dared to measure the incomprehensible.… (más)
  1. 104
    Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time por Dava Sobel (lorax)
    lorax: A fairly obvious recommendation, but a good match nonetheless.
  2. 00
    The Rise and Fall of Alexandria: Birthplace of the Modern World por Justin Pollard (davesmind)
    davesmind: I enjoyed both of these, but my nod goes to Circumference. This is a more personal story and uses Eratosthenes as means to introduce you to Alexandria. The narrative flows smoothly and transports you back 2300 years to a time when Alexandria was arguably the center of civilization.… (más)
Ninguno
Cargando...

Inscríbete en LibraryThing para averiguar si este libro te gustará.

Actualmente no hay Conversaciones sobre este libro.

» Ver también 14 menciones

Mostrando 1-5 de 23 (siguiente | mostrar todos)
More like 3.5. Fascinating and educational for a layperson like me, but I felt it was bloated. Yes, Eratosthenes was covered--even with the sketchy information on his life from the Suda [the Byzantine encyclopedia] and what his conclusions on geodesy--shape of the earth and its circumference--were and how he reached them. The earth as a globe was only one out of several theories current at that time. It was amazing that he reached pretty accurate conclusions using only primitive surveying techniques of that time and his knowledge of geometry--no trigonometry tables back then. But the book was swollen was tangential information such as: the Hellenistic society in Alexandria of his time and its exhaustive description; the Ptolemaic dynasty; The Museum and Great Library in Alexandria; how knowledge of the ancients was lost [much through the vandalism of Christian zealots who I'd compare to the present-day Taliban or to ISIS rampaging through the ruins of Palmyra] and finally recovered, some through the Arab scholars, some on palimpsests, and some through references in other writings that have come down to us.

I feel this readable book could have been condensed into a volume half its size. Interesting to me was the fact that Columbus knew the world was round, BUT he underestimated the size of its circumference. Also interesting was the fact that his successor at the Great Library, Aristophanes of Byzantium, was the man who first developed a system of diacritics used in the Greek language; they are still used today in Modern Greek in a simpler form. The author closes with a metaphor: as the Eratosthenes Mountain Range 6000 feet undersea, Eratosthenes the man has remained obscure to us.

Recommended for popular science fans. ( )
  janerawoof | Aug 31, 2015 |
Esta reseña ha sido escrita por los Primeros Reseñadores de LibraryThing.
A good read, particularly for those interested in the topic. If you enjoyed "Longitude", you'll likely enjoy this book but towards the end it seems to get a bit 'fuzzy'. The first 2/3rds was really quite interesting even if the author's style may make it somewhat more difficult for readers to understand. Drawing a straight line - around the earth or in a book's presentation of topic - is never an easy task. It's a good read, though, and a book I'm glad I picked up! ( )
  minfo | Oct 25, 2009 |
Esta reseña ha sido escrita por los Primeros Reseñadores de LibraryThing.
A very well written, necessarily tangential account of Erastosthenes' calculation of the circumference of the Earth. I really enjoy these excursions into popular science. If you enjoyed Longitude, you will enjoy Circumference. ( )
  Geedge | Aug 3, 2009 |
Esta reseña ha sido escrita por los Primeros Reseñadores de LibraryThing.
Author Nicholas Nicastro has written several historical novels set in the ancient world; here he moves into popular history with an account of Eratosthenes' calculation of the circumference of the Earth. Since little is known about Eratosthenes, much of the book involves filling in various tangents, such as details about ancient Alexandria where Eratosthenes became head librarian of the Museum in 245 BC. The beginning of the book is rather choppy with the first chapter moving from ancient sea travel to the Pharos lighthouse, Euergetes, the Ptolemaic king who brought Eratosthenes to Alexandria, the author's own trip to Alexandria in 2007, and finally the method and assumptions Erathosthenes used to calculate the Earth's circumference.
1 vota albanyhill | Jul 24, 2009 |
Esta reseña ha sido escrita por los Primeros Reseñadores de LibraryThing.
This is another of that group of books of which Longitude is probably the most famous example. Nicholas Nicastro explores the history of the idea of the circumference of the globe. It is a journey that starts with questions raised by an ancient Greek named Eratosthenes, about whom we learn a great deal more than his discovery of circumference, and doesn't end until almost two thousand years later. For those who love the history of science and how ideas develop it is a great read. Enjoy! ( )
  jwhenderson | Jul 23, 2009 |
Mostrando 1-5 de 23 (siguiente | mostrar todos)
sin reseñas | añadir una reseña
Debes iniciar sesión para editar los datos de Conocimiento Común.
Para más ayuda, consulta la página de ayuda de Conocimiento Común.
Título canónico
Título original
Títulos alternativos
Fecha de publicación original
Personas/Personajes
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés. Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
Lugares importantes
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés. Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
Acontecimientos importantes
Películas relacionadas
Epígrafe
Dedicatoria
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés. Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
Dedicated with love to me daughter, Nell Nicastro, who gave me life
Primeras palabras
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés. Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
In 245 BCE, Eratosthenes of Cyrene left Athens to take up his position as head librarian at the Museum in Alexandria.
Citas
Últimas palabras
Información procedente del conocimiento común inglés. Edita para encontrar en tu idioma.
(Haz clic para mostrar. Atención: puede contener spoilers.)
Aviso de desambiguación
Editores de la editorial
Blurbistas
Idioma original
DDC/MDS Canónico
LCC canónico

Referencias a esta obra en fuentes externas.

Wikipedia en inglés

Ninguno

How do you measure the size of the planet you're standing on?   "Circumference" is the story of what happened when one man asked himself that very question. Nicholas Nicastro brings to life one of history's greatest experiments when an ancient Greek named Eratosthenes first accurately determined the distance around the spherical earth. In this fascinating narrative history, Nicastro takes a look at a deceptively simple but stunning achievement made by one man, millennia ago, with only the simplest of materials at his disposal. How was he able to measure the land at a time when distance was more a matter of a shrug and a guess at the time spent on a donkey's back? How could he be so confident in the assumptions that underlay his calculations: that the earth was round and the sun so far away that its rays struck the ground in parallel lines? Was it luck or pure scientific genius? Nicastro brings readers on a trip into a long-vanished world that prefigured modernity in many ways, where neither Eratosthenes' reputation, nor the validityof his method, nor his leadership of the Great Library of Alexandria were enough to convince all his contemporaries about the dimensions of the earth. Eratosthenes' results were debated for centuries until he was ultimately vindicated almost 2000 years later, during the great voyages of exploration. "Circumference" is a compelling scientific detective story that transports readers back to a time when humans had no idea how big their world was--and the fate of a man who dared to measure the incomprehensible.

No se han encontrado descripciones de biblioteca.

Descripción del libro
Resumen Haiku

Antiguo miembro de Primeros reseñadores de LibraryThing

El libro Circumference de Nicholas Nicastro estaba disponible desde LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

Autor de LibraryThing

Nicholas Nicastro es un Autor de LibraryThing, un autor que tiene listada su biblioteca personal en LibraryThing.

página de perfil | página de autor

Debates activos

Ninguno

Cubiertas populares

Enlaces rápidos

Valoración

Promedio: (3.57)
0.5
1
1.5
2 1
2.5
3 7
3.5 6
4 7
4.5
5 2

 

Acerca de | Contactar | LibraryThing.com | Privacidad/Condiciones | Ayuda/Preguntas frecuentes | Blog | Tienda | APIs | TinyCat | Bibliotecas heredadas | Primeros reseñadores | Conocimiento común | 204,724,809 libros! | Barra superior: Siempre visible