Pat Naughtin wrote: > Bastard units > Bastard units are those that are neither fish nor fowl. These are composite > units made up from parts of various methods without definable parentage. > Examples are grams per mile, pounds per tonne, watts per square inch, ounces > per square metre, and micrograms per square foot. These are the worst kind > of units and should be avoided at all times.
I agree, and would include in this category any system that uses the gram (or kg) as a unit of force or weight, rather than mass as it's supposed to be. > British colonial units > British Colonial has several advantages. It makes a useful distinction > between British Colonial from British Imperial units. It is reasonably > technically correct and it makes it clear where these units originated. > However, having said all of this, British colonial units is neither accurate > nor inclusive; the British colonies used Imperial units � not colonial units > and not the USA Customary units that shared the same names. AFAIK this is not true. The only major difference between American and British Imperial measures is the units of volume (gallon, quart, etc.), and in those cases the units were the same in both places until Britain changed theirs in the 1820s. Therefore "British colonial" is accurate.
