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I could tell you the Curiosity rover is 2.9m × 2.7m × 2.2m and 899kg, but it's far more immediately evocative to say it's about the size and mass of a typical s
by jffry 4y ago
I could tell you the Curiosity rover is 2.9m × 2.7m × 2.2m and 899kg, but it's far more immediately evocative to say it's about the size and mass of a typical sedan.
- meepmorp 4y agoApparently, America is the only country on earth where mass media describes things in familiar terms to make them readily intelligible to a wide audience.
- timeon 4y agoEven if typical sedan is something that is quite common I still prefer actual measurements so I can reference it to something that I am personally more familiar with. I know that one can fit typical sedan inside 2.5m x 5m parallel parking spot but so does SUV and Fiat Punto.
- anigbrowl 4y agoTo you, perhaps. I really like getting the dimensional information; my dig was at the way news media preemptively goes for the lowest common denominator every time, and frequently omits the accurate information altogether. I think this contributes to innumeracy.