ver·nier
/ˈvərnēər/
noun
noun: vernier; plural noun: verniers
a small movable graduated scale for obtaining fractional parts of subdivisions on a fixed main scale of a barometer, sextant, or other measuring instrument.
Origin:
The vernier scale originated in ancient China as early as the Xin dynasty (9 AD).[1][2] It was reinvented in its modern form in 1631 by the French mathematician Pierre Vernier (1580–1637). Its use was described in detail in English in Navigatio Britannica (1750) by John Barrow, the mathematician and historian.[3] In some languages, this device is called a nonius and it was also commonly called a nonius in English until the end of the 18th century.[4] Nonius is the Latin name of the Portuguese astronomer and mathematician Pedro Nunes (1502–1578) who in 1542 invented a related but different system for taking fine measurements on the astrolabe (nonius) that was a precursor to the vernier.[4][5] The French astronomer Jérôme Lalande (1732–1807) popularized the name of the instrument as a "vernier" in his book on astronomy Traité d'astronomie (2 vols) (1764).[6]
/ˈvərnēər/
noun
noun: vernier; plural noun: verniers
a small movable graduated scale for obtaining fractional parts of subdivisions on a fixed main scale of a barometer, sextant, or other measuring instrument.
Origin:
The vernier scale originated in ancient China as early as the Xin dynasty (9 AD).[1][2] It was reinvented in its modern form in 1631 by the French mathematician Pierre Vernier (1580–1637). Its use was described in detail in English in Navigatio Britannica (1750) by John Barrow, the mathematician and historian.[3] In some languages, this device is called a nonius and it was also commonly called a nonius in English until the end of the 18th century.[4] Nonius is the Latin name of the Portuguese astronomer and mathematician Pedro Nunes (1502–1578) who in 1542 invented a related but different system for taking fine measurements on the astrolabe (nonius) that was a precursor to the vernier.[4][5] The French astronomer Jérôme Lalande (1732–1807) popularized the name of the instrument as a "vernier" in his book on astronomy Traité d'astronomie (2 vols) (1764).[6]
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