Kater's pendulum minutes per day slower than at Paris, or equivalently the length of a pendulum with a swing of one second there was 1¼ Paris "lines", or 2.6 mm, shorter than at Paris. It was realized by the scientists of the day, and proven by Isaac Newton in 1687, that this was due to the fact that the Earth was not a perfect sphere but slightly oblate; it was thicker at the equator because of the Earth's rotation. Since the surface was farther from the Earth's center at Cayenne than at Paris, gravity was weaker there. Since that time pendulums began
Which? the creation of the Scottish parliament in 1999, in January 2002 Which? established an office in Edinburgh. Which? also works with the European Consumers' Association (BEUC) which brings together over forty consumer organisations from across Europe to represent common consumer interests within the EU institutions. The Consumers' Association has the power under The Enterprise Act 2002 to take action on behalf of consumers, including the ability to bring a super-complaint to the Office of Fair Trading (OFT). Which? is one of eight organisations able to issue a super-complaint. The Consumers' Association was among the first groups granted these new powers.