Dimensions and typography
Only typographers could come up with this….
The Law of Optical Volumes states that the area between any two letters in a word must be of equal measure throughout the word, and remain consistent throughout the body of text.The Law boils down to the science of kerning. In typography jargon, kerning is the act of adjusting the space between two letters to make words and sentences lay out more evenly. For example in the word “VAST,†there is usually reduced space between the V and A, and maybe extra space between the S and T. Otherwise the “VA†would seem too far apart and the “ST†would seem cramped.
Above from an interesting article called Law of Optical Volumes: The Math Behind Wired’s New Logo on the Wired Magazine Web site, via Daring Fireball.
The lack of agreement between area and volume (ink on paper, volume?) reminds me of the way architects use the word ‘mass’. That seems to mean some kind of impression on the visual field, so probably a solid angle if anything.