Hartley Units for Height | The Boneyard

Hartley Units for Height

Millenial23

Millenial23

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Just out of curiosity, how did Hartley Units become a thing on the BY? Ya know, why not Doty units, or Charles units, etc?
 
I'll let someone else explain its precise genealogy, but as I recollect it, it relates to Hartley's height seeming to be both inconsistently listed across sources in an especially egregious way (I think there were 3 or 4 inch discrepancies between sources?), and was also at times wildly inaccurate when she was observed standing next to her teammates. Given this humorous instability, using Hartley as a baseline and then measuring her teammates and other players as standing next to her actual observed real world height became a jestful way of acknowledging that listed player heights are, shall we say, approximate values.

(And I think it's be reinvigorated lately because of confusion about ONO's stated height vs. observed height vis-a-vis her standing next to teammates, and also next to quote-unquote fellow "6'4"" player Ruthy Hebard, etc.. This has spawned renewed recognition that listed player height is as notional as it is correct, and thus the reappearance of the timeless Hartley Units inside joke as a way of figuring out just how tall ONO really is.)

I'll add that it's easily my favorite inside joke on the BY. Whoever came up with it initially deserves all the likes in the world.
 
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Others will chime in I'm sure -- but the gist of it is that back when Bria first committed, there was a very long back-and-forth on the BY as people tried to arrive at her 'true' height. Part of the confusion stemmed from the fact that some of the normal references (printed news coverage, HS bball roster info, etc) listed her at 5'7" which--later confirmed by Bria herself, IIRC--turned out to be an old data point that had not been updated for whatever reason. Other sources at the time listed her at 5'8" or 5'9". Then of course everyone on the BY dissected every photograph we could find with Bria, comparing her to this or that person, what kind of shoes were involved, etc. etc. etc., etc. ..... etc...... etc., etc., etc.... etc...... et cetera!!!

Because of the discrepancy between sources and also the propensity of many/most BYers to never let things go...!!...it took on a life of its own as sort of a running saga, like "the song that never ends." After awhile it became a "thing" to inquire about players' real height, partly out of genuine curiosity re: the player, of course, but also as an homage to Miss Hartley herself. Soon after, a shorthand reference to this saga was popularized, that being the creation of the Bria Hartley Unit, which I think is equivalent to 5'9". Since then, players have often been measured in terms of this esteemed Unit, for no particular reason than to entertain ourselves :cool:

Incidentally, I believe Bria was asked about it directly at one point by John Altavilla and possibly others in the Horde at the time, partly because of the 'uproar' on this board. Not quite sure what her reply was ...!!.. .but pretty sure she said that she was between 5'8" and 5'9" in bare feet, and 5'9" in shoes. Or something like that. No small irony that I can't even confidently say what the number is at this late date, which I suppose is par for the course here on the BY... :D
 
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VAMike23 said:
Others will chime in I'm sure -- but the gist of it is that back when Bria first committed, there was a very long back-and-forth on the BY as people tried to arrive at her 'true' height. Part of the confusion stemmed from the fact that some of the normal references (printed news coverage, HS bball roster info, etc) listed her at 5'7" which--later confirmed by Bria herself, IIRC--turned out to be an old data point that had not been updated for whatever reason. Other sources at the time listed her at 5'8" or 5'9". Then of course everyone on the BY dissected every photograph we could find with Bria, comparing her to this or that person, what kind of shoes were involved, etc. etc. etc., etc. ..... etc. etc., etc., etc.... etc. et cetera!!!

Because of the discrepancy between sources and also the propensity of many/most BYers to never let things go...!!...it took on a life of its own as sort of a running saga, like "the song that never ends." After awhile it became a "thing" to inquire about players' real height, partly out of genuine curiosity re: the player, of course, but also as an homage to Miss Hartley herself. Soon after, a shorthand references to this saga was popularized, that being the creation of the Bria Hartley Unit, which I think is equivalent to 5'9". Since then, players have often been measured in terms of this esteemed Unit, for no particular reason than to entertain ourselves :cool:

Incidentally, I believe Bria was asked about it directly at one point by John Altavilla and possibly others in the Horde at the time, partly because of the 'uproar' on this board. Not quite sure what her reply was ...!!.. .but pretty sure she said that she was between 5'8" and 5'9" in bare feet, and 5'9" in shoes. Or something like that. No small irony that I can't even confidently say what the number is at this late date, which I suppose is par for the course here on the BY... :D
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"The propensity to never let things go" is such a kind and lovely description of our obsessive /compulsive boneyard denizens. I nominate you for a BY bonus! The Hartley unit meme is one of the best, along with "we need more bigs" , and "we need to play the bench more". The three team parlay of "We must play our big(measured in Harley Units) bench players more is my all time favorite. :D
 
I think FarmFan et al. have it right. There was far more controversy over Bria’s height than that of any other player. We saw 5’8” to 5’11” frequently and maybe a broader range occasionally. The point is that her height was a mysterious quantity. One day, probably in reference to a subsequent player, I coined the term “Hartley Unit” and it stuck. Little did I know that there really is a Hartley Unit. Now we have a competing measure known as the Dolson Unit.
 
A small footnote: Big Shot Bria was the standard bearer of BY height controversy until KML came along. While it was not unusual for players to grow an inch or two while in college, KML actually shrunk between her Sophomore and Junior seasons, as documented on the official UCONN WBB website.
 
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MilfordHusky said:
I think FarmFan et al. have it right. There was far more controversy over Bria’s height than that of any other player. We saw 5’8” to 5’11” frequently and maybe a broader range occasionally. The point is that her height was a mysterious quantity. One day, probably in reference to a subsequent player, I coined the term “Hartley Unit” and it stuck. Little did I know that there really is a Hartley Unit. Now we have a competing measure known as the Dolson Unit.
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I tip my hat to you, @MilfordHusky! It's an excellent (and hilarious) approach to handling the alternating growth and shrinkage of WCBB players season to season, site to site, and shoulder to shoulder with other players. May Bria Hartley and her units live (anywhere from 5'8" to 6'0") large for posterity.
 
MilfordHusky said:
I think FarmFan et al. have it right. There was far more controversy over Bria’s height than that of any other player. We saw 5’8” to 5’11” frequently and maybe a broader range occasionally. The point is that her height was a mysterious quantity. One day, probably in reference to a subsequent player, I coined the term “Hartley Unit” and it stuck. Little did I know that there really is a Hartley Unit. Now we have a competing measure known as the Dolson Unit.
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Hartley (unit) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
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MilfordHusky said:
I think FarmFan et al. have it right. There was far more controversy over Bria’s height than that of any other player. We saw 5’8” to 5’11” frequently and maybe a broader range occasionally. The point is that her height was a mysterious quantity. One day, probably in reference to a subsequent player, I coined the term “Hartley Unit” and it stuck. Little did I know that there really is a Hartley Unit. Now we have a competing measure known as the Dolson Unit.
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I had forgotten who coined the term .... at least *that* much is certain now :cool:
 
Here it is ...
Hartley (unit) The hartley (symbol Hart ), also called a ban, or a dit (short for d ecimal dig it ), is a logarithmic unit which measures information or entropy, based on base 10 logarithms and powers of 10, rather than the powers of 2 and base 2 logarithms which define the bit, or shannon.
 
DaddyChoc said:
It came from a picture of DoggyDaddy and Bria... then he took a pic with someone else and comparison started
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We have dualing provenance, how lovely! Maybe we could settle it with a duel?? I will drop the handkerchief!
 
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HuskeyinSC said:
Here it is ...
Hartley (unit) The hartley (symbol Hart ), also called a ban, or a dit (short for d ecimal dig it ), is a logarithmic unit which measures information or entropy, based on base 10 logarithms and powers of 10, rather than the powers of 2 and base 2 logarithms which define the bit, or shannon.
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Is this thread about Shannon Bobbit? She was definitely less than a full Hartley Unit. :D
 
The Hartley unit is a derivation of the Hilton Armstrong unit, another elusive measurement conundrum from the men’s board.
 
By the way, the Hartley Unit not only resided on the Boneyard but spanned multiple board platforms. If my memory serves me well, before joining the Boneyard, I was a member of the infamous ESPN board. I recall the Hartley Unit being active at that time also...before ESPN decided to shut the forum down.
 
mbr33ct said:
By the way, the Hartley Unit not only resided on the Boneyard but spanned multiple board platforms. If my memory serves me well, before joining the Boneyard, I was a member of the infamous ESPN board. I recall the Hartley Unit being active at that time also...before ESPN decided to shut the forum down.
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Sales wasn’t even recruited way back then... how was Hartley?
 
mbr33ct said:
By the way, the Hartley Unit not only resided on the Boneyard but spanned multiple board platforms. If my memory serves me well, before joining the Boneyard, I was a member of the infamous ESPN board. I recall the Hartley Unit being active at that time also...before ESPN decided to shut the forum down.
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Cross pollination or pollution depending on your preferences, but no NON GMO on the internet these days unless a pay wall keeps the gules of sports from blowing in the wind.
 
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