What an interesting and varied discussion on ‘Scales’ we had! Who knew there were so many different scales for weighing and measuring? Examples of balance and spring scales were shown and discussed.We covered the history of balance scales first used by the ancient Egyptians. Maat was the goddess of truth, justice and order and it’s from her that Lady Justice has become immortalised today at our law courts. She carries the scales to ‘weigh the evidence’, her double-edged sword (added in Roman times) is meant to cut through conflict and punish the guilty, and the most recent addition, the blindfold, represents impartiality, regardless of appearance, gender or wealth.Sue told us about the Glasgow Coma Scale, first used in 1974, which provides doctors with a practical method for assessment of impairment of conscious level in response to defined stimuli.Liz spoke about musical scales which was somewhat baffling for the likes of certain non-musical folks (me!) but a great attempt at explaining a difficult subject.Katharine brought a couple of well-used temperature gauges for jam, caramel, yogurt making etc.One of members, Ruth, is a keen geologist who started to collect rocks and stones at the age of eight and went on to become an avid collector of minerals. She told us about the Mohs Scale of Hardness ranging from 1 Chalk (the softest) to 10 Diamond (the hardest). We learned about scaly reptiles, fish, birds, insects and mammals such as armadillos and pangolins. The latter are poached and trafficked in Asia for their scales which are much sought for use in local cuisine and medicine. Consequently, they are now critically endangered.Let it not be said that there is a lack of lateral thinking within the Horsham group. One of our members decided to give us a potted history of a different type of Scales – the famous actress Prunella – evoking fond memories of TV series we had followed and loved. There are of course many other types of scales which we didn’t have time to cover. Which others do you know?
