[Avodah] standard measures?

[Micha Berger]

On Wed, Mar 12, 2025 at 11:22:47AM +0200, Joel Rich via Avodah wrote:
> Is anyone aware of any surveys of when halacha looks to objective measures
> (eg kzait) and when to subjective measures (eg maaleh lugmav)? When we look
> at community "standards" (eg most people buy seeds to eat) and when we look
> to individual's (eg this buyer usually buys to plant)?

About part A, measures...

The AhS says that even an "amah" can be subjective.

If you want to know "4 amos birshus harabbim", use your own forearm.
The only time you use a standard amma is for things like eiurvin or a
sukkah used by multiple people.

So that the standard measure is simply the norm for a large group of
humans, and thus secondary to the idea that measures are basically
personal. Just a way for a din to work for a group.

I don't know what he would do with a kezayis. Would he follow R Chaim
Volozhiner, because the nearest thing to a subjective olive is using
the more available olive in your own region and time?

-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 "'When Adar enters, we increase our joy'
http://www.aishdas.org/asp    'Joy is nothing but Torah.'
Author: Widen Your Tent       'And whoever does more, he is praiseworthy.'"
- https://amzn.to/2JRxnDF                   - Rav Dovid Lifshitz zt"l