I realized after saying 16th celcius birthday that would be 60 in farenheit. Oops.
“Metric Mess”
- Thread starter Andem
- Start date
I realized after saying 16th celcius birthday that would be 60 in farenheit. Oops.
Yeah.
People who are for the French Metric system say that Imperial doesn't make sense because whereas everything in Metric is equally divided into 10s, 100s, 1000s etc (such as 10 grams = 1 kilogram) things in British Imperial are more higgledy-piggledy.
For example, in British Imperial -
12 lines = 1 inch
12 inches = 1 foot
3 feet = 1 yard
1760 yards = 1 mile
100 links = 1 chain
10 chains = 1 furlong
8 furlongs = 1 mile
4 inches = 1 hand
22 yards = 1 chain
5.5 yards = 1 rod, pole or perch
4 poles = 1 chain
40 poles = 1 furlong
-------------------------------
4 gills = 1 pint
8 pints = 1 gallon
So it's all higgledy-piggledy compared to Metric, so the Metric people say that this is why Metric is superior.
But these Metric people seem to forget that we use Imperial more often than you realise.
TELLING THE TIME is done in Imperial measurements -
60 seconds = 1 minute
60 minutes = 1 hour
24 hours = 1 day
7 days = 1 week
365 days = 1 year
4 weeks = 1 month
52 weeks = 1 year
12 months = 1 year
For hundreds of years we've been telling the time using Imperial measurements and we've never had any problems.
But I won't be suprised if Brussels starts trying to metricate time.
Blackleaf
Well I think it's more lively to have higgledy-piggledy measurements - leaves us room to fudge on weight and height and financial matters... all those important things.
Only in construction should they be accurate.....and the gas gauge on my auto.... which is a German car and I still can't understand half of what it tells me...
And if Brussels wants to be "anal" about everything.... they can if they keep it to themselves....lol
Well I think it's more lively to have higgledy-piggledy measurements - leaves us room to fudge on weight and height and financial matters... all those important things.
Only in construction should they be accurate.....and the gas gauge on my auto.... which is a German car and I still can't understand half of what it tells me...
And if Brussels wants to be "anal" about everything.... they can if they keep it to themselves....lol
Telling the time isn't based on imperial measurements, it's based on position of the sun in our solar system, and revolutions of the Earth. And the SI measure of time is in seconds as it relates to scientific measurements. The second used to be a fraction of the mean solar day, 1/86,400. The second is now measured by the duration of :
9 192 631 770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium 133 atom.
Personally I don't care which measurement is used in every day life. I have a tendancy to think in metric terms, but I still can understand how much volume a pint is. I know how tall I am in both systems and my weight as well, unless someone were to ask me how many stones I weighed. Hell, I still call liquor bottles by pint, quart, half-gallon and 40 ouncer, even though thats not how much is in the bottle.
9 192 631 770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium 133 atom.
Personally I don't care which measurement is used in every day life. I have a tendancy to think in metric terms, but I still can understand how much volume a pint is. I know how tall I am in both systems and my weight as well, unless someone were to ask me how many stones I weighed. Hell, I still call liquor bottles by pint, quart, half-gallon and 40 ouncer, even though thats not how much is in the bottle.
Ha! I have the final word....
If everyone wants metric - tell me what you are going to call the body parts you walk on!!!
Meters?
And Tonington - can you explain all that to Brussels? hahah. I am cruel I know - I just don't like their "sprouts"....
If everyone wants metric - tell me what you are going to call the body parts you walk on!!!
Meters?
And Tonington - can you explain all that to Brussels? hahah. I am cruel I know - I just don't like their "sprouts"....
A 2 by what?
Building codes are in metric, while construction practices are typically in imperial. How nuts is that?
A 2 by 4 is a 38mm x 89mm.
ukeright:
Building codes are in metric, while construction practices are typically in imperial. How nuts is that?
A 2 by 4 is a 38mm x 89mm.
ukeright:
Tonington
I kinda favor - "thumbwides" instead of inches....
And all those poems and songs about 2 x 4s...... we can't lose that history!
I kinda favor - "thumbwides" instead of inches....
And all those poems and songs about 2 x 4s...... we can't lose that history!
How can anyone use a random hodge podge of numbers as a measurement system? Its a rediculous mathematical and precision nightmare.
Im taking Mechanical Engineering right now, and the Imperial system is the bane of my existance. All my books only come in metric, except for the occasional question that asks you to convert. Im curious as to what american universities teach.
Im still guilty of using imperial terms as mentioned in the article above. Thats not the governments fault, they cant control culture. Its more american culture and our proximity to them that causes the mess.
Im taking Mechanical Engineering right now, and the Imperial system is the bane of my existance. All my books only come in metric, except for the occasional question that asks you to convert. Im curious as to what american universities teach.
Im still guilty of using imperial terms as mentioned in the article above. Thats not the governments fault, they cant control culture. Its more american culture and our proximity to them that causes the mess.
It would be foolish not too. While the imperial system can be useful in everyday life, it's totally unfunctional for science.
I agree, science needs to have some uniformity.
As for day to day life, it really boils down to what someone is used to. When I lived in Europe for several years, it took a couple of months to get into the metric system, but really no biggie. Coming back to the States, I had to get on Imperial again.
...but how do they buy the gas to fly 'em? Gallons or litres? Pounds or kilograms? Some people who were lucky enough to light on fields at Gimli, Manitoba and the Azores really want to know....
Wolf
Having grown up during the switch I had the worst of both systems. Today I have choosen the Imperial system for myself and convert everything to it.
Fortunately I have the capability of coverting without the aid of calculators. I use a little thing called my brain.
Fortunately I have the capability of coverting without the aid of calculators. I use a little thing called my brain.
Go pop the hood on your Dodge (which is now a German car anyway, being a Daimler), and see what wrenches you need. They're all metric.