Since when is it a requirement for a system of units to be musical? These ifp goons are incredible. This nonsense also figures on either one of the BWMA sites or the Inch Perfect one. Shostakova's 7th Symphony in Fahrenheit? H�ndel's Messiah in slinch? I wonder on what ifp units pop music is based, the BTU, the slug, the US gallon or the Imperial pint? Of course, the metrics of poetry has also nothing at all to do with SI or FFU for that matter. However, I suspect that the industry that makes musical instruments is overwhelmingly ifp.
Han P.S. I think that the BTU should in fact be called ATU now, American Thermal Unit, as it is much more an American unit than a British one today. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Louis JOURDAN" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, 2002-02-12 11:17 Subject: [USMA:18165] Re: Typographic units At 9:11 -0800 02/02/11, John Hudson wrote: Salut M. Jourdan, Sharon Irving at the ATypI secretariat forwarded to me your letter regarding typographic measurement, about which I have a few points to make (excuse the pun). Thanks for your message, M. Hudson. I am not at all familiar with 'Q', and would like to know where you heard about this. On the Internet (I am not a specialist in typographic matters!). See for example http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~mgk25/metric-typo.html and note the reference to the German standard DIN 16507-2. (music, by the way, should be included in your exceptions to SI, with the added note that the metric system is inherently unmusical).* Here you surprise me ! How a measurement system could be musical ? One of the most common calculations in determining the harmonious relationship of text block to page n traditional typography is division by 3 or by multiples of 3. I appreciate, but is that a golden rule ? It is worth remembering that international standard paper sizes (A4, etc) while useful to the paper manufacturing industry are not based on any harmonious system of proportion. The standard paper sizes (A series) are not, strictly speaking, based on the metric system, but on a ratio height/width = square root of 2 : this allows a magnification or reduction of a text, image, etc. with the same occupation of the relative area of the sheet. Now it is true that the A0 size has been determined by the ISO 216 standard with a surface of 1 square meter. See for example http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~mgk25/iso-paper.html PS. I think you overstate the use of the metric system in some parts of the world. I am well aware of that. It is indeed the matter of a book I have just written. I have to confess that I don't see much justification to thatresistance... Regards Louis Jourdan
