Right,

Fanshafting, dialling codes, and now geometry. Melvyn Bragg is currently
talking to me about the Golden Ratio [1]:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/...nourtime.shtml

One of his contributors has cited railway tickets as an everyday object
which is sized according to the Golden Ratio. That ratio is 1:1.618ish;
some quick measurements of tickets give me a ratio of ~1.58, which is
close but not the same. Does anyone have exact numbers from a
specification?

Oh, hang on, it's something called ISO 7810:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_7810

Which has a side ratio of 1.5857725083364209ish. Right, that's that
sorted. Disregard this.

Where did that size come from? It's not an A-series size.

tom

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_ratio

--
The Gospel is enlightened in interesting ways by reading Beowulf and The
Hobbit while listening to Radiohead's Hail to the Thief. To kill a dragon
(i.e. Serpent, Smaug, Wolf at the Door) you need 12 (disciples/dwarves)
plus one thief (burglar, Hail to the Thief/King/thief in the night),
making Christ/Bilbo the 13th Thief. -- Remy Wilkins

Tom Anderson wrote:
Right,

Fanshafting, dialling codes, and now geometry. Melvyn Bragg is currently
talking to me about the Golden Ratio [1]:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/...nourtime.shtml

One of his contributors has cited railway tickets as an everyday object
which is sized according to the Golden Ratio. That ratio is 1:1.618ish;
some quick measurements of tickets give me a ratio of ~1.58, which is
close but not the same. Does anyone have exact numbers from a
specification?

Oh, hang on, it's something called ISO 7810:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_7810

Which has a side ratio of 1.5857725083364209ish. Right, that's that
sorted. Disregard this.

Where did that size come from? It's not an A-series size.

Well, I notice that 2.125" * 4 = 8.5", which is the standard letter-size
paper width in the U.S., and would also be the width of many continuous
form printers.
--
Michael Hoffman

At 21:49:55 on Thu, 29 Nov 2007 Tom Anderson opined:-

Right,

Fanshafting, dialling codes, and now geometry. Melvyn Bragg is currently
talking to me about the Golden Ratio [1]:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/...nourtime.shtml

One of his contributors has cited railway tickets as an everyday object
which is sized according to the Golden Ratio. That ratio is 1:1.618ish;
some quick measurements of tickets give me a ratio of ~1.58, which is
close but not the same. Does anyone have exact numbers from a
specification?

Oh, hang on, it's something called ISO 7810:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_7810

Which has a side ratio of 1.5857725083364209ish. Right, that's that
sorted. Disregard this.

Where did that size come from? It's not an A-series size.

No idea. I see that the reference states "The proportion of sides is
approximately the golden ratio (1.618:1)."

Not that approximate - about 2% out.
--
Thoss

"Michael Hoffman" wrote in message
...
Tom Anderson wrote:
Right,

Fanshafting, dialling codes, and now geometry. Melvyn Bragg is currently
talking to me about the Golden Ratio [1]:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/...nourtime.shtml

One of his contributors has cited railway tickets as an everyday object
which is sized according to the Golden Ratio. That ratio is 1:1.618ish;
some quick measurements of tickets give me a ratio of ~1.58, which is
close but not the same. Does anyone have exact numbers from a
specification?

Oh, hang on, it's something called ISO 7810:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_7810

Which has a side ratio of 1.5857725083364209ish. Right, that's that
sorted. Disregard this.

Where did that size come from? It's not an A-series size.

Well, I notice that 2.125" * 4 = 8.5", which is the standard letter-size
paper width in the U.S., and would also be the width of many continuous
form printers.

I suggest the ID-1 identification/credit card format derives from business
cards printed in a 4x4 layout on foolscap folio,
ie 8.5 x 13.5 inches giving 2.125 x 3.375...

Paul S

On Fri, 30 Nov 2007, Paul Scott wrote:

"Michael Hoffman" wrote in message
...

Oh, hang on, it's something called ISO 7810:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_7810

Which has a side ratio of 1.5857725083364209ish. Right, that's that
sorted. Disregard this.

Where did that size come from? It's not an A-series size.

Well, I notice that 2.125" * 4 = 8.5", which is the standard letter-size
paper width in the U.S., and would also be the width of many continuous
form printers.

I suggest the ID-1 identification/credit card format derives from
business cards printed in a 4x4 layout on foolscap folio, ie 8.5 x 13.5
inches giving 2.125 x 3.375...

That's got to be it. It's too precise a fit to be anything else. Well
spotted!

tom

--
taxidermy, high tide marks, sabotage, markets, folklore, subverting, .