Hugh Birkenhead
Mon, 27 Sep 2004 12:02:06 -0700
> > Compare the benefits of switching from British Units (inches, > Feet, > > miles pints gallons) to a Metric Units (kilos, Liters, Meters) > > Ask any scientist what he uses. > > That's for sure. Of course, I live in the only developed nation > in the world that still refuses to adopt the metric standard. How > fun it is for me to convert units. At least with every country in the world, including the USA, you pretty much avoid insanity by having either have one standard or the other in daily use in your country (i.e. metric OR imperial)... every country apart from the UK. Here in blighty we have the frankly bizarre situation of BOTH (mutually incompatible) systems trying to co-exist alongside each other, with obvious resulting confusion: * Milk is delivered to the doorstep only in pint bottles, but when you buy it in a shop it's only available in millilitres * In pubs you buy draught (from tap) beer by the pint, but you can only buy bottled beer, spirit shots and other bar drinks by millilitres * You regularly see 'for sale' signs on development land quoting the available area in EITHER acres OR hectares... you also see carpet warehouses advertising either by square feet or by square metres (or both, but with one measurement in a massive typeface and the other in tiny i.e. unreadable print underneath) * In local supermarkets it's not uncommon to find 99% of the products on the shelves weighed in grams, but then find the vegetables and other 'sell by weight' items weighed in pounds and ounces * Weather forecasters have to describe temperatures in both Celsius AND Fahrenheit, but often forget Fahrenheit in their haste... also * On the roads, weight restrictions are only in metric tonnes, but distances are in miles and yards and height restrictions are in both metres AND feet and inches (and they wonder why double-decker buses still get stuck under low bridges) * We describe our cars' weight in tonnes/kilograms and the engine displacement in litres, yet measure the wheel diameter in inches and the tire pressure in pounds per square inch (psi)... Engine torque is described in either foot pounds or Newton metres... What's more, we price petrol by the litre yet measure fuel economy in miles per gallon! Maybe this is hardly on topic... I just thought that many Americans who think their use of imperial units is crazy just have no idea how crazy it is here trying to juggle two completely incompatible systems that very few people on the street really know how to convert between at all, let alone convert between on the spot at the supermarket shelves. ...gasps for air... Hugh B --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.747 / Virus Database: 499 - Release Date: 01/09/2004 ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> $9.95 domain names from Yahoo!. Register anything. http://us.click.yahoo.com/J8kdrA/y20IAA/yQLSAA/mx3olB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/shavian/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/