Size cover art

Size

How It Explains the World

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Size

By: Vaclav Smil
Narrated by: Stephen Perring
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

100 words: The New York Times bestselling author returns with a mind-opening exploration of how size defines life on Earth.

Explaining the key processes shaping size in nature, society and technology, Smil busts myths around proportions - from bodies to paintings and the so-called golden ratio - tells us what Jonathan Swift got wrong in Gulliver's Travels - the giant Brobdingnagian's legs would buckle under their enormous weight - and dives headfirst into the most contentious issue in ergonomics: the size of aeroplane seats.

It is no exaggeration to say this fascinating and wide-ranging tour de force will change the way you look at absolutely everything.

10 words: Size, an omnipresent scalar, is the measure of all things.

1 word: Size.

©2023 Vaclav Smil (P)2023 Penguin Audio History History & Philosophy Mathematics Science Technology

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All stars
Most relevant  
the subject ranged over a wide range and while concentration was necessary at times when data or formulae were being discussed the author succeeded for the most part in making his arguments understandable.

thought provoking

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