Dear Metermorphosen, I am writing to you as a matter of curiosity.
A few days ago I visited the Geelong Art Gallery, and in their bookshop I found your 'History by the Meter � The past 2000 years of world history unfold on the 2 meters of the >> Historic Folding Rule<< It is a very interesting concept, and I was impressed with the idea that each millimetre of the two metre rule represents one year of history and a century is covered in 100�mm. Unfortunately the inch scale on the reverse side left me completely puzzled as their is no apparent correlation between the lengths and the dates at all. Which brings me to my question: why did you add the inch scale to an otherwise excellent ruler? Might I suggest that you consider another scale on the reverse of your rule, and that is the scale to show the complete history of the Earth from its formation around 5000 million years ago to the present. In this instance each millimetre would represent 2.5 million years. Although the rule would be mostly blank there would be would be a quickening of events from the trilobites, molluscs, corals, and cryptozoan bacteria (600 million years ago or 240 mm from the end), via the fishes and armoured fishes (425 million years or 170 mm from the end), to the dinosaurs (250 million years ago or 100 mm from the end), the mammals (63 million years ago or 25 mm from the end), and humans (who at about 2.5 million years ago would take up the last millimetre. Note: these figures are intended as an indication only; you might like to consult with a geologist or a biologist for more accurate data. Although, I was intrigued and I very much liked the idea of the Rule of History I didn't buy one as, since Australia changed to the International System of Units in 1970, we deliberately don't use double sided rules either at home or in our business. Cheers, Pat Naughtin 48 Roberts Road Belmont, Geelong 3216 Australia 61 3 5241 2008 [EMAIL PROTECTED] --
