Spelling of unit *names* is not standardized under SI. The US and all other nations are therefore entitled to use their customary spelling of metric units. Many countries, especially in Northwestern Europe, spell meter, liter, etc, for instance Germany and The Netherlands. The fact that French and British English are used in the two language versions of the brochure does not mean that other countries must adopt the -re spelling. Only the notation of *numbers and symbols* is standardized. See the SI brochure from the BIPM, up. 109-110. Nothing about the spelling of unit names, only symbols and numbers.
Less on topic: people who have a DVD player are forced to buy widescreen televisions, as 4:3 DVDs are deliberately made available only in very small numbers; they are almost all widescreen with these hideous black bars. Traders of all kind always claim that they respect the choice of their customers. The Metric Martyrs and the Irish butchers, for instance.The DVD problem shows what hogwash this is! They only respect consumer's choices when it suits them, but when they can impose things like widescreen TV's on us, down the drain go customer's rights. Irish butchers do not use dual metric/avoirdupois pricing. What about people in Ireland who want to buy in metric? And the same thing is still going on in Canada. Another thing: changing to the duodecimal number system is impossible. I would be implacably opposed to it. Everything in mathematics will have to start from scratch. Although clocks use the duodecimal system, the numbers on them are still decimal ones. In the trash with most clocks and watches! The cost would be astronomic. And all this because 12 can be divided by 3 and by 6 and 10 cannot. It will mean the death of metric as we know it, but I think that the ifp camp would be in for a nasty surprise. How, for instance, can something like 1 rod = 5-1/2 yd = 16 ft 6 in or 1 mile = 1760 yards etc.etc. be accommodated under the duodecimal system? Most factors in FFU are binary and many others are not based on any number system at all. Only a few have ever been factors of 12 and/or 3. A duodecimal system of units would also be based on 1 and factors of the new 10 (1,2,.........a,be, 10). Han Historian of Dutch Metrication, Nijmegen, The Netherlands ----- Original Message ----- From: "Brig Bhutan Vim" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, 2002-08-09 1:25 Subject: [USMA:21585] Digi TV : Opposition to US gov > Hi Madan: > I am no body to talk for or against the political forces in US, but I see that advocates in both groups have their opinions *to disagree* like what happened at time of signing the Metre Convention; as a result America is still struggling to get away from Yards/Miles/Pounds and gallons. They advocate the SI-metric policies but refuse to change even the spellings of 'meter and liter" to Systeme Internationale d'unites (SI in all languages). Great thinking, I must profess! Brij Bhushan Vij <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> <snip>
