The Measure of Reality

Western Europeans were among the first, if not the first, to invent mechanical clocks, geometrically precise maps, double-entry bookkeeping, precise algebraic and musical notations, and perspective painting. More people in Western Europe thought quantitatively in the sixteenth century than in any other part of the world, enabling them to become the world's leaders. With amusi...

Western Europeans were among the first, if not the first, to invent mechanical clocks, geometrically precise maps, double-entry bookkeeping, precise algebraic and musical notations, and perspective painting. More people in Western Europe thought quantitatively in the sixteenth century than in any other part of the world, enabling them to become the world's leaders. With amusing detail and historical anecdote, Alfred Crosby discusses the shift from qualitative to quantitative perception that occurred during the late Middle Ages and Renaissance. Alfred W. Crosby is the author of five books, including the award-winning Ecological Imperialism: The Biological Expansion of Europe, 900-1900 (Cambridge, 1986)

艾尔弗雷德·W.克罗斯比（Alfred W. Crosby，1931—2018）

美国历史学家，得克萨斯州大学奥斯汀分校的历史、地理及美国研究教授。主要从事生态环境史研究，被视为环境史研究的奠基者。被芬兰科学院颁授院士称号。

著有《哥伦布大交换：1492年以后的生物影响和文化冲击》（1972）、《被遗忘的大流行》（1976）、《生态帝国主义》（1986）等。