US going metric
- Thread starter QCNR
- Start date
I can still recall one of my elementary school teachers telling us in '71 or '72 that we would all be learning the metric system because the US would be changing over the very next year......or maybe the year after.....or the year after that....
S
Swa j-Ten
Guest
Historically, the metre was defined by the French Academy of Sciences as 1/10,000,000 of the distance from the equator to the north pole through Paris.
HOW IS THIS ANY MORE SENSICAL OR LESS ARBITRARY THAN MY KING'S FOOT??
The metric system is retarded.
HOW IS THIS ANY MORE SENSICAL OR LESS ARBITRARY THAN MY KING'S FOOT??
The metric system is retarded.
L
lrcb40
Guest
It'll end up like the Brits - they drink beer in pints, eat food sold in kilograms, drive miles on litres of petrol.......
They even sent a green grocer to court and fined him because he labelled his veggies in the price/pound (weight) to help his aged pensioner customers to understand what they were getting!! The law says it has to be posted in price/kg!:rofl:
But then the USA doesn't have a bunch of jerks sitting in Brussles to make laws.......:bigok:
Andy
They even sent a green grocer to court and fined him because he labelled his veggies in the price/pound (weight) to help his aged pensioner customers to understand what they were getting!! The law says it has to be posted in price/kg!:rofl:
But then the USA doesn't have a bunch of jerks sitting in Brussles to make laws.......:bigok:
Andy
You act like it's news....
Most science is done in the metric system. I flip between the two, have to use metric for the science-side of geology, then switch it to English units (miles, etc.) for the mining side...
Most science is done in the metric system. I flip between the two, have to use metric for the science-side of geology, then switch it to English units (miles, etc.) for the mining side...
S
Swa j-Ten
Guest
My work, too, is divided 50-50. We typically use English units for hydrodynamic work and the American river industry. The metric system is used for structural calculations and larger ships which are fabricated overseas.Leslie said:
lrcb40 said:It'll end up like the Brits - they drink beer in pints, eat food sold in kilograms, drive miles on litres of petrol.......
They even sent a green grocer to court and fined him because he labelled his veggies in the price/pound (weight) to help his aged pensioner customers to understand what they were getting!! The law says it has to be posted in price/kg!:rofl:
But then the USA doesn't have a bunch of jerks sitting in Brussles to make laws.......:bigok:
Andy
No we have a bunch of jerks sitting in Washington to make laws
moon? What are you, nuts?Chris-St Louis said:When is Norway going to the moon?
I can see it now, Fist paper clip on the Moon.
Can they get Norwegian wood all the way across the street to the Swedish bikini team?
Swa j-Ten said:
The modern, non arbitrary definition of the meter is the distance traveled by a ray of electromagnetic (EM) energy through a vacuum in 3.33564095 x 10-9 second.
The fact that a base unit is arbitrary isn't the problem anyway. It's the arbitrary subdivisions and multiples that are the problem. We count in base 10, so it is resonable that a system of measurment would revolve around multiples of 10 to the positive and negative powers.
The metric system (or SI system as used in science, there are some minor differences) is far from retarded and is quite systematic. It's scientists and research engineers who explore space, and therefore the moon should be measured in SI units.
Nomar said:
That was before they realized the massive expense involved in just changing all the street signs in this vast country.
When people ask me why the US doesn't use the metric system for the general public, I say, "'Cuz we have the bomb." That, and China hasn't reduced us to a third world country yet via economic means.
nah, either 8 or 16. Depending on whether he intended to use the middle finger as a stop bit.jymmiejamz said:
Having come from Russia to the U.S. a while ago, I had my reservations about the "standard" system. It makes a lot of sense for mechanical engineering purposes, though. Ranking fasteners and material stock along a binary scale allows one to quickly estimate what size is needed, say, to double the strength, without the use of a calculator.
The standard system is a nightmare, though, when it comes to electricity and heat... Using the unit of force as a primary unit (pound) doesn't sound great, either.
Anyone hear of the Metric Conversion Act of 1975?
http://lamar.colostate.edu/~hillger/laws/metric-conv.html
At least gas is sold in BRITISH thermal units
I initially grew up with inches and feet. Converted to decimal and metric and now have had to go back.
I also grew up with pounds shillings and pence. That went "metric" Feb 1971
http://lamar.colostate.edu/~hillger/laws/metric-conv.html
At least gas is sold in BRITISH thermal units
I initially grew up with inches and feet. Converted to decimal and metric and now have had to go back.
I also grew up with pounds shillings and pence. That went "metric" Feb 1971
