Re: [aroid-l] Universal measuring device

From: "Julius Boos" <ju-bo at msn.com> on 2004.05.10 at 22:45:44(11488) Reply-To: aroid-l@lists.ncsu.edu To: Subject: [aroid-l] Universal measuring device Date: Sun, 9 May 2004 20:43:47 -1000 Dear Gary, I have always used whatever can be recognised and is available when needed to give 'scale' to a picture in the field. Recently while visiting Trinidad we were photographing the blooms of a large Xanthosoma cf. undipes in the field, I believe we used either a pen or a folding pocket knife to give a sense of 'scale' to these blooms. For a larger object like an entire plant, we might have laid a shovel or a machette alongside the plant. Where in the middle of the acific are you located??? Any Cyrtosperma merkusii nearby??? I want to correspond with someone who has sampled/eaten the corms!! Good luck, Julius +More Dear Aroiders, I have been racking my brain for a few months trying to come up with a proposal for us all. Those of us that are new to Aroids, or have not been able to see many species, would be greatly assisted by the inclusion in the pictures of the specimens a universally recognized "thing" that we could all find to determine the size of the specimen or flower. Something that is common in all lands, more or less. I thought of the Euro, but have never seen one nor am I likely to do so. And I doubt that the average enthusiast in Asia, Africa, Europe, etc. has ever seen an American quarter. A solid object is easier to carry, and less subject to damage than a metric plastic, wood, or metal measuring device, and is less subject to damage. This may be a futile gesture, but I think that the collective international minds reading and contributing to this forum might be able to determine a universally available object that would work. An example (extreme) the picture of Alocasia robusta 'Sarawak' that is at http://www.malesiana.com/plant/10Expand.asp?ProductCode=AL-43-1 would not be as dramatic without the man standing below it. And a pocket sized object would be lost in the picture. But most plants could have it worked in for scale. Thank you for listening. Respectfully, Gary in the middle of the Pacific Ocean

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