Hand (unit) radix numbering system, where a hand is four inches. The hand, sometimes also called a handbreadth or handsbreadth, is an anthropic unit, originally based on the breadth of a male human hand, either with or without the thumb, or on the height of a clenched fist. On surviving Ancient Egyptian cubit-rods, the royal cubit is divided into seven palms of four digits or fingers each. Five digits are equal to a hand, with thumb; and six to a closed fist. The royal cubit measured approximately 525 mm, so the length of the ancient Egyptian hand was about 94 mm. In
How to Fly a Horse similarly observed, "Creation isn't magic. Though the subtitle of "How to Fly a Horse" promises a 'secret history' of creation, the secret is, essentially, that there is no secret. Creativity is the result of hard work, learning the foundations and getting better at problem-solving. That's bad news for those hoping a bump on the head will lead to the design for the flux capacitor that transforms the DeLorean into a time machine. It's good news, however, for everyone else, since it means that creativity is accessible to anyone." The book was also praised by Amanda Erickson of "The Washington Post",