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PRINCIPLE OF STUDY

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Originally appearing in Volume V28, Page 481 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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PRINCIPLE OF STUDY .—I. Limits of Variation in Different Copies, Places and Times.—Unfortunately, so very little is known of the ages of weights and See also:

measures that this datum—most essential in considering their See also:history—has been scarcely considered. In measure, Egyptians of See also:Dynasty IV. at Gizeh on an See also:average varied I in 350 between different buildings (27). Buildings at See also:Persepolis, all of nearly the same See also:age, vary in unit I in 450 (25). Including a greater range of See also:time and See also:place, the See also:Roman See also:foot in See also:Italy varied during two or three centuries on an average -o--o- from the mean. Covering a longer time, we find an average variation of 2-1,-f, in the See also:Attic foot (25), rya in the See also:English foot (25), 1-h in the English itinerary foot (25). Se we may say that an average variation of ~h by See also:toleration, extending to See also:double that by See also:change of place and time, is usual in See also:ancient measures. In weights of the same place and age there is a far wider range; at Defenneh (29), within a See also:century probably, the average variation of different See also:units is 21ei 2'2, and 21 i the range being just the same as in all times and places taken together. Even in a set of weights all found together, the average variation is only reduced to 'o, in place of 21-6 (29). Taking a wider range of place and time, the Roman See also:libra has an average variation of 216 in the examples of better See also:period (43), and in those of See also:Byzantine age 212- (44). Altogether, we see that weights have descended from See also:original varieties with so little intercomparison that no rectification of their values has been made, and hence there is as much variety in any one place and time as in all together. Average variation may be said to range from -a1ff to -,lb- in different units, doubtless greatly due to defective balances.

2. See also:

Rate of Variation.--Though large See also:differences may exist, the rate of See also:general variation is but slow—excluding, of course, all monetary See also:standards. In See also:Egypt the cubit lengthened Th in 1 These figures refer to the authorities at the end of this See also:section.

End of Article: PRINCIPLE OF STUDY

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PRINGLE, SIR JOHN (1707–1782)

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