2001-06-02
Molto Buono except for one thing. When asked "..tell me in an another
unit", I would have converted it to millimetres. If they insisted on an
English unit, I would ask back, "What is an English unit?" Everytime a
stranger comes to your town and you answer them in English units instead of
acting ignorant, then what motivation is there for them to learn metric and
promote conversion at home?
If Americans feel that not only have you went to the effort to learn English
so they don't have to learn other languages, now they will feel they don't
have to learn metric because Europeans and others know FFU just as well.
Even though this group didn't know FFU either, others might. The next time
answer them only in metric and let them figure it out.
John
----- Original Message -----
From: "James R. Frysinger" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Saturday, 2001-06-02 17:52
Subject: [USMA:13364] Re: What I would like a metric mandate to do.
> Molto buono! Bravo, Leonardo!
>
> Jim
>
> Leonardo Boselli wrote:
> ....
> > Just for your info: on thursay 31 may 2001 i was travelling by train
> > between Firenze and Pisa (Italy, Europe) while 6 out the other 7
> > places in my compartment were occuped by a group of north
> > American people, just unboarded by a cruise ship. They were
> > planning a visit to a museum inm firenze, then coming back to the
> > ship in Livorno.
> > One of them asked me if they could visit the cathedral plce in pisa,
> > and how much far was from the station.
> > I replied that there is a station nearby, but at the time the woul
> > have been back there were no direct services, so they would have
> > had a faster trip by bus. They said that even walking was ok, and
> > asked how much far was. I replied "about 1800 meters". They
> > looked at me in a strange way, then i repeated a "1 point 8
> > kilometer"again strange scrutinizing looks, so one of them told me
> > "THEY do not understand meters ... kan you tell in another unit ?"
> > I just told "About 6000 ft" that would have been the more "rational"
> > conversion.
> > They bagan to look again themselves until one began to think with
> > lod voice ...
> > "well, there are 3 ft to one yd ... "and asked to another one "how
> > many yards in a mile ?" no one was able to answer this question
> > .... So in turn they asked me ... "how much far ... in minutes ???"
> > I refused to reply since someone could need just 10 minutes, other
> > would need up to 30 minutes , and of course when I asked how
> > much fast was thir pace no one was able to give me a speed ,
> > wheter it was in m/s km/h or mph !
> > Leonardo Boselli
> > Firenze
> > http://freedom.dicea.unifi.it/~leo/toscana
>
> --
> Metric Methods(SM) "Don't be late to metricate!"
> James R. Frysinger, CAMS http://www.metricmethods.com/
> 10 Captiva Row e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Charleston, SC 29407 phone/FAX: 843.225.6789
>
