For centuries, thinkers have understood that the answer was measuring time, and eventually two possible solutions emerged. Sure, the concept of sectioning off the world by concentric lines of latitude (running east-west) and longitude (aligned by the poles) had existed as early as 300 B. An extraordinary tale of political intrigue and academic back-biting, of intellectual brilliance, and mechanical genius, of heroic endeavours and downright dishonesty … a superb achievement. The economic losses and the loss of life was so staggering that finding a solution to the problem was elevated to the almost legendary level of finding the Holy Grail or the Fountain of Youth. Sobel does this by charting the connections between Harrison and luminary contemporaries, including Isaac Newton, Edmund Halley, and Christopher Wren.

Longitude is a tremendous tale of battling scientists and the perseverance of hard work, brilliance, and humility through political intrigue and greed.She holds honorary doctor of letters degrees from the University of Bath, in England, and Middlebury College, Vermont, both awarded in 2002.

But it’s good to know that if the GPS network ever goes down, there is at least one museum I can rob for some high-quality longitude calculation devices. But where ego is concerned and establishing primacy is often necessary for the money and prestige that follows a discovery, tempers will flare and harsh words will be exchanged. So with this centuries-old problem juxtaposed against a feud between a rural carpenter-turned-watchmaker and the Astronomer Royal, Sobel turns Longitude from a history book into an exciting story.Pero no es tan fácil como parece, porque la temperatura y la presión atmosférica afectan mucho la maquinaria de los relojes, adelantándolos o retrasándolos o simplemente parándolos.

Thanks to GPS, we can forget that calculating longitude without the help of a network of satellites is difficult and requires great mathematical and engineering expertise. Longitude is much harder, because everyone at the same latitude sees the same sun and stars, just at different times of day.

A very interesting, and informative book that for the most part, effectively balances character with information. As Sobel describes the clever devices he designed to solve the limitations of sea clocks, all I could think was, “I have no idea what she is trying to say. In the early 1700s, determining a ship's position was a highly imprecise and challenging process as the main method of navigation was by dead reckoning, guided only by compass and the direction of the sun's path.