FrankMak
Aug1-03, 04:34 PM
The book "The Measure of All Things" by Ken Adler traces the French attempt to define the meter by the earth's size. It would have been easy to alert readers why some of the survey results, reported in the book, were inconsistent. Current geodetic surveying practices identify systematic errors caused by regional and local gravity anomalies, parameters the old French surveyors were unaware of. The author dismisses the effects of local gravity anomalies, pg 298, and this can explain the error the one surveyor attempted to hide for years.
A good primer on a few geodetic surveying issues are covered by the Simon Fraser University web site.
http://www.sfu.ca/earth-sciences/courses/new207/3-Gravity/3-Gravity.htm
A good primer on a few geodetic surveying issues are covered by the Simon Fraser University web site.
http://www.sfu.ca/earth-sciences/courses/new207/3-Gravity/3-Gravity.htm