Volume of a Square Prism, Ross Solid #4
date: label: date made
content: ca 1895
notes: label: Description
content: This is the fourth in a series of models illustrating the volume of solids designed by William Wallace Ross, a school superintendent and mathematics teacher in Fremont, Ohio. It consists of two unpainted wooden square prisms. A paper label on one of them reads: Four Oblong or Square Prisms. As both this label and Ross’s manual for his models suggest, two of the pieces of this model have not survived.
label: Description
content: Ross took the fundamental unit of measure of rectangles to be one square inch, and the fundamental unit of measure for solids to be one cubic inch. He argued from there that a 1” x 6” rectangle had an area of 6 square inches (see 1985.0112.191). Similarly, he found that both of these solid models consisted of 6 cubic inches. Two in a row would had twice the volume, or 12 cubic inches. From this, he generalized that the volume of a rectangular solid was equal to the area of the base times the altitude.
label: Description
content: Object 1985.0112.207 is also shown in the image.
label: Description
content: Compare models 1985.0112.205 through 2012.0112.217. For further information about Ross models, including references, see 1985.0112.190.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Ohio, Fremont
topic: label: Subject
content: Mathematics
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Mathematics
label: See more items in
content: Science & Mathematics
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Wesleyan University
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1985.0112.206
label: catalog number
content: 1985.0112.206
label: accession number
content: 1985.0112
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Geometric Models
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 2.5 cm x 15.2 cm x 2.5 cm; 31/32 in x 5 31/32 in x 31/32 in