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From: Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid>
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: Semi OT Grace Hopper lecture
Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2024 21:25:49 -0000 (UTC)
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On Fri, 8 Nov 2024 11:15:50 +0100, Terje Mathisen wrote:

> The standard paper size available in all printers and copiers is of
> course A4, and that A4 sheet is exactly(*) one nanosecond tall (29.97
> cm) as well as one nanosecond when travelling inside an optical fiber
> wide!

Hey, I never noticed that. Proof, if any were needed, that international 
standard paper sizes and units of measurement were given to us by the 
gods ...

By the way, that must mean the refractive index of optical fibre is close 
to 1.4. Is that plastic? Because glass would be closer to 1.5, wouldn’t 
it?

> Terje (*) Within your ability to measure with a ruler, or a paper
> supplier to cut.

Yes, the size of a sheet of paper can vary quite appreciably (by as much 
as a few percent), depending on the humidity particularly.