Bill: Thanks for mentioning the Montgomery County Web site and metric
I wrote the material for the metric pages because I got frustrated when told that it was going to take 2 - 3 years to get the SI into the curriculum. The purpose is to "Make Metric Meaningful," I didn't use the term metrics however. Editors take license as newspapers do. However, that is minor and correctable beside getting SI into the curriculum for every day use by teachers and students. That should be a goal of the USMA. Stan Doore . ----- Original Message ----- From: "Bill Potts" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, December 30, 2002 1:44 PM Subject: [USMA:24282] Re: If War Comes > John: > > Go to http://www.mcps.k12.md.us and do a site search with metric as the > keyword. You'll get quite a few references. > > The only unfortunate thing is their use of the awful "metrics" in some > contexts. > > Bill Potts, CMS > Roseville, CA > http://metric1.org [SI Navigator] > > >-----Original Message----- > >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On > >Behalf Of kilopascal > >Sent: Monday, December 30, 2002 06:42 > >To: U.S. Metric Association > >Subject: [USMA:24276] Re: If War Comes > > > > > >2002-12-30 > > > >You say the Montgomery County School System in Maryland is committed to the > >SI. Can you explain how they teach SI? Do you know for sure how > >they teach > >it? For example, do they teach SI as a primary system with actual hands on > >experience using SI measuring devices? Or, do they teach SI as a subset to > >FFU? In other words, is their method to teach FFU and when SI is > >introduced, all that is taught is how to convert SI to FFU? > > > >Whatever the method, teaching SI to the students is like teaching Esperanto > >to American students. Five minutes after you learn it, you forget > >it as you > >have no practical means to use it. This is why it is important to at least > >metricate those parts of the economy that would reinforce the > >teaching, such > >as grocery store scales, media weather forecasts, gasoline sales, and road > >signs. > > > >Without some form of metrication taking place in the real world, the > >educational aspect of it is a waste of time and money. > > > >John > > > > > > > >----- Original Message ----- > >From: "G. Stanley Doore" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >Sent: Monday, 2002-12-30 09:21 > >Subject: [USMA:24275] Re: If War Comes > > > > > >> Not much has changed. > >> > >> US Marine infantry types still use yards whereas Marine artillery and > >other > >> weapon systems are metric. It's still a mixture. > >> > >> We must have the SI taught in schools rather than any old metric > >system so > >> kids know and understand the relationship of units in the single common > >> language of measurement worldwide. It's necessary if they want to get > >good > >> science and technology jobs. The Montgomery County School System here in > >> Maryland is committed to the SI. > >> > >> Stan Doore > >> > >> ----- Original Message ----- > >> From: "Howard Ressel" Sent: Monday, December 30, 2002 8:47 AM > >> Subject: [USMA:24274] If War Comes > >> > >> > >> No, its not the Iraq version, this has to do with a book I found > >at a used > >> book fair written in 1938 by R. Ernest Dupuy and George Fielding > >Eliot. It > >> discusses the military situation in 1937, very spooky reading about how > >they > >> thought the US should stay out of the war and that we would never be able > >to > >> recover the Philippines if we lost them. > >> > >> What is interesting (at least for this list) is that the book > >mixes metric > >> and English units throughout. One table of rifles for different countries > >is > >> a real hodgepodge. The country and type of rifle is listed along with it > >> effective and maximum range. Effective ranges are listed in yards for all > >> countries while maximum ranges are listed in meters for France, German, > >> Italy, Japan, Czechoslovakia and Spain, listed in Yards for > >Great Britain > >> and the US and listed in paces for Russia. Most distance in the book are > >in > >> yards and miles but almost all munition caliber are listed in > >mm. The main > >> exception is battle ship guns all listed in inches. > >> > >> > >> Howard Ressel > >> Project Design Engineer, Region 4 > >> (585) 272-3372 > >> > >> > >
