Re: [ql-users] (OTramblings about left and right)
On 25 Sep 2006, at 21:25, Malcolm Cadman wrote: Gone metric in 1959 and nearly 50 years later - hardly aybody's noticed. Sounds about right. So for about the next 40 to 50 years we carried on expecting a pint of milk, a pint of beer, filling station pumps deliver litres of petrol and we still think miles per gallon, ask for a quarter of a pound of sweets or cooked meat in shops, road signs in miles or miles per hour, speedometers predominantly in mph. The thing is that the English measuring system is all based around the practical world of experience. Some of examples that I can think of are the inch being the distance of the thumb to the first joint. The yard being a stride. So, with people becoming taller, the yard becomes longer. George ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] (OTramblings about left and right)
In message [EMAIL PROTECTED], George Gwilt [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes On 25 Sep 2006, at 21:25, Malcolm Cadman wrote: The thing is that the English measuring system is all based around the practical world of experience. Some of examples that I can think of are the inch being the distance of the thumb to the first joint. The yard being a stride. So, with people becoming taller, the yard becomes longer. It is working estimation, as you know ... :-) -- Malcolm Cadman ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] (OTramblings about left and right)
On 24 Sep 2006, at 21:56, Dilwyn Jones wrote: Shall we ponder how this rumour will work? Start with clock faces changing from 1-12 to 1-10. Napoleon tried to make the time go metric. I actually saw an example of a French clock of the period which had ten hours per day. It didn't take on Napoleon must have been before his time. George ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] (OTramblings about left and right)
George Gwilt wrote: On 24 Sep 2006, at 21:56, Dilwyn Jones wrote: Shall we ponder how this rumour will work? Start with clock faces changing from 1-12 to 1-10. Napoleon tried to make the time go metric. I actually saw an example of a French clock of the period which had ten hours per day. It didn't take on Napoleon must have been before his time. Along with the French Revolutionary [metric] Calendar: 12 Months of 30 days, each of 3 weeks of 10 days each week; an extra 5/6 days were a holiday at the end of the year; the clock was also changed to have 10 hours per day, each of 100 minutes, each of 100 seconds[1]. It lasted from 1792AD = 1FRC until 15FRC = 1806AD. [1] So the FRC second was 0.864 [Gregorian?] seconds long. ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] (OTramblings about left and right)
Dilwyn Jones wrote: ... rant You probably forget the inevitable British resistance to change. How long have we been thinking of going metric? We actually went metric on 1 July 1959 when: The yard was redefined as 0.9144 metre /exactly/[1] and The pound was redefined as 0.45359237 kilogram /exactly/ ie the yard and pound since 01 July 1959 have been defined in /exact/ terms of the metre and kilogram - not exact multiples of 10 I grant you, but defined /exactly/ none-the-less. Just I expect nobody noticed - like normal. [1] Sourced from my Collier's Encyclopedia [set of 24 volumes] published 1968 ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
Re: [ql-users] (OTramblings about left and right)
rant You probably forget the inevitable British resistance to change. How long have we been thinking of going metric? We actually went metric on 1 July 1959 when: The yard was redefined as 0.9144 metre /exactly/[1] and The pound was redefined as 0.45359237 kilogram /exactly/ ie the yard and pound since 01 July 1959 have been defined in /exact/ terms of the metre and kilogram - not exact multiples of 10 I grant you, but defined /exactly/ none-the-less. Just I expect nobody noticed - like normal. Gone metric in 1959 and nearly 50 years later - hardly aybody's noticed. Sounds about right. So for about the next 40 to 50 years we carried on expecting a pint of milk, a pint of beer, filling station pumps deliver litres of petrol and we still think miles per gallon, ask for a quarter of a pound of sweets or cooked meat in shops, road signs in miles or miles per hour, speedometers predominantly in mph. Start a rumour that Brussels will soon metricate time and people will panic and believe you! Shall we ponder how this rumour will work? Start with clock faces changing from 1-12 to 1-10. Work out the number of seconds per day, all months same length (can't have 12), adjust the years so we don't need leap years every 4 years (forget about how leap years vary at the turn of the century). Ah, hang on, slight problem, I don't think the earth's orbit around the sun (or is the other way around???) is accurate enough ;-) Let's get this rumour started. Marcel will now program this new official metric time into SMSQ/E by 1st April next year! And he thought Easyptr 4 was fun. Well, he never could resist responding to a challenge ;-) Hmmm, insanity has definitely set in here, time to give up for today I think. -- Dilwyn Jones -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.405 / Virus Database: 268.12.8/455 - Release Date: 22/09/2006 ___ QL-Users Mailing List http://www.q-v-d.demon.co.uk/smsqe.htm
