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Why make a magazine about measurements?





Incline Clock; A clock with a weight placed at the top of a ramp, going down over the course of a week. The object uses gravity instead of a spring, telling the time by using both weight and distances.

Incline Clock; A clock with a weight placed at the top of a ramp, going down over the course of a week. The object uses gravity instead of a spring, telling the time by using both weight and distances.






Can Opener Bridge; a bridge named so by the unfortunate effects of its height, almost but not permiting most standard height trucks to pass through, in turn uncovering their top as would a can opener. Mismeasurement in action.

Can Opener Bridge; a bridge named so by the unfortunate effects of its height, almost but not permiting most standard height trucks to pass through, in turn uncovering their top as would a can opener. Mismeasurement in action.


Measurements aren't cool or flashy to the general public, as most often the word technology is used on a shiny stage during a launch event, or during a press release about new innovations. ATM is interested to present a different flavour than the popular appreciation of new over everything else, and focus on a thousand years old technology, tried and tested in daily-life activities where we need to weigh, assess and measure.

The (sometimes literal) tension between precision and imprecision will unravel a diverse collection of stories in ATM.




Despite living in a very accurate world, we use loose measurements because they are literally and metaphorically closer at hand.

In the past we solved problems such as how to store ice before refrigeration, how to tell if gold is real, and how to make sure trade was fair, all by measuring and comparing things. Today in daily tasks we assess very well without a ruler or thermometer, by using bananas and coins as references, or sticking an arm out the window to know how many clothes to put on.

Many solutions are based on the same tools: our hands, senses, and everyday objects. Mundane things that at first seem to not have much design or precision help us with enough information to get the job done.