Abstract
SCALES, as used by the architect and surveyor, may be roughly divided into two classes. In the first we have scales of equal parts, in the second scales of unequal parts, by means of which results may be obtained which otherwise would require more or less calculation. The fundamental idea of a scale of equal parts is that any assigned magnitude may be represented by a line of determinate length, and that thus any relation between magnitudes of the same kind may be indicated by a relation between lines in the same ratio. The simplest form in which they can be used is to represent in an enlarged or diminished size the magnitude of a length, as when, for instance, a mile is represented by an inch. By altering in two rectangular directions the magnitude of an area, we obtain a plan of it in which the scales used may be different for the two directions, as when the cross-section of a stretch of country has one scale for horizontal distances, and a different scale for vertical heights.
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Scales . Nature 30, 385–387 (1884). https://doi.org/10.1038/030385e0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/030385e0