Fathom Britain, it can mean the quantity of wood in a pile of any length measuring square in cross section. In Hungary the square fathom ("") is still in use as an unofficial measure of land area, primarily for small lots suitable for construction. Fathom A fathom is a unit of length in the imperial and the U.S. customary systems equal to , used especially for measuring the depth of water. There are two yards (6 feet) in an imperial fathom. Originally the span of a man's outstretched arms, the size of a fathom has varied slightly depending on whether it
A Trillion Feet of Gas a select Senate committee to look into lobbying practices. The deregulation bill passed anyway, although President Eisenhower vetoed it on February 17. In the fictional discussion of these events, as Updike portrays it, Mr. Born claims that he is in possession of a trillion feet of natural gas that he has no incentive to sell unless some similar bill is passed in the next session of Congress and signed. On their way home, the Forrests and Mr. King are a bit confused. They wonder how many zeros are in a trillion — American and UK conventions on that differed —