3 ms·

Nice work, but "infinitesimally small space of only around 10 nanometres in diameter" really rubs me the wrong way. Well, at least they are not using diameter o

Nice work, but "infinitesimally small space of only around 10 nanometres in diameter" really rubs me the wrong way. Well, at least they are not using diameter of human hair as a unit of measure.

numlock86 7y ago
> Well, at least they are not using diameter of human hair as a unit of measure. I recently heard a scientific talk mentioning that the earth is losing around three slices of mortadella in helium every second ...
- pr_nik 7y ago
  In defense of academics resorting to such comparisons, making this tangible, exciting, accessible, and generally common sense-compatible is all the rage nowadays. The attention economy certainly rules the PR-side of academia and success there can translate into cash for basic research. Not my idea, not my style, but it's a thing.
  - Koshkin 7y ago
    Problem is, those who might need this sort of comparisons never read such articles. (Educated people already know what a nanometer is.)
- Iwan-Zotow 7y ago
  HOw many olympic size pools? Or football fields?