← Back to home

Measure

Look up measure in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Measure may refer to:

Measurement

Measurement is the assignment of a number to a characteristic of an object or event. It’s the process by which a quantity is determined. We assign numbers, and those numbers are meant to represent something real, something tangible. But the act itself, the assignment, is often more abstract than we like to admit. It’s a convention, a system we’ve built to try and make sense of the chaos, or at least quantify it. Think of it as putting a label on a shadow. It tells you something, but not everything.

Law

  • Ballot measure, proposed legislation in the United States. This is where the populace gets to play legislator, a rather messy affair most of the time. It’s democracy’s way of saying, "Here, you try it." Usually, it involves a lot of shouting and very little understanding.

  • Church of England measure. This is legislation specific to a particular religious institution. It’s a set of rules designed to govern a body that already believes itself to be divinely guided. One wonders if the divine is checking the footnotes.

  • Measure of the National Assembly for Wales. This was primary legislation in Wales between 1999 and 2011. Essentially, it’s the kind of law that used to be made by a national assembly. Before they changed the rules, I suppose.

  • Assembly Measure of the Northern Ireland Assembly (1973). Another piece of legislation, this one from a specific, and notoriously turbulent, period in Northern Ireland’s history. Legislation born from conflict tends to carry a certain weight, a certain grimness.

Science and Mathematics

  • Measure (data warehouse). In the realm of data warehousing, a measure is a property on which calculations can be performed. It’s the number you’re supposed to analyze, the quantifiable aspect of a vast ocean of information. It’s the atom you hope represents the whole universe.

  • Measure (mathematics). This is a systematic way to assign a number to each suitable subset of a given set. It’s abstract, precise, and utterly indifferent to your understanding. It’s the language of pure thought, where intuition goes to die.

  • Measure (physics). This refers to a way to integrate over all possible histories of a system in quantum field theory. It’s a mathematical construct that attempts to account for every conceivable path a particle might take, even the ones that seem utterly impossible. It’s the ultimate exercise in acknowledging the absurd.

  • Measure (termination). Used in the analysis of computer program termination. It’s a metric to determine if a program will eventually stop running, or if it’s destined to loop into eternity. A rather existential question for a piece of code.

  • Measuring coalgebra. A coalgebra constructed from two algebras. This is deep into abstract algebra, the kind of thing that makes perfect sense to a select few and sounds like gibberish to everyone else. It’s a mathematical construct built upon other mathematical constructs. Layers upon layers of abstraction.

  • Measure (Apple). An iOS augmented reality app. This is the mundane application of the concept, a tool on your phone that uses augmented reality to measure things. It’s the universe reduced to a simple utility.

Other Uses

  • Measure (album). This refers to an album by Matt Pond PA, released in 2000, and its title track. A specific instance of the word being used as a title, a label for a collection of sounds.

  • Measure (bartending) or jigger. A bartending tool used to measure liquor. Precision for a different kind of liquid. It’s about getting the proportions right, whether it’s for a formula or a cocktail.

  • Measure (journal). An international journal of formal poetry. This is where poetry adheres to strict rules and structures. It’s a measure of how much constraint can still produce something artful.

  • "Measures" ( Justified ). A 2012 episode of the TV series Justified. Another instance of the word as a title, this time for a narrative episode. A measure of plot progression, perhaps.

  • Measure (typography). This refers to line length in characters per line. It’s about the visual flow of text, how wide a line should be before the reader’s eye gets tired. A measure of readability.

  • Coal measures. The coal-bearing part of the Upper Carboniferous System. A geological term, defining strata rich in coal. A measure of ancient biomass, compressed and fossilized.

  • The Measure (SA). An American punk rock band. Music that likely doesn't concern itself with precise measurements, but rather with raw energy.

  • Measure, an alternative term for bar (music). In music, a measure is a segment of time defined by a given number of beats. It’s the rhythmic container, the unit of musical time.

See also

  • All pages with titles beginning with Measure.

  • All pages with titles containing Measure.

  • Countermeasure. An action taken to oppose or neutralize another action. It’s a reactive measure, a response to a perceived threat.

  • Quantity. A property that can exist as a multitude or magnitude. The very essence of what measurement seeks to capture.

  • Measure for Measure. A play by William Shakespeare. A work of drama that explores themes of justice, mercy, and hypocrisy. It’s a measure of human nature, perhaps.

Topics referred to by the same term

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Measure. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.