[USMA:34831] Metres have overtaken yards in the UK

[Daniel]

Some of you may find this forum discussion very interesting.  It shows proof that a growing number of British are using metric and imperial is dying out in common speech and usage.  This is noted from people not tied in with the metric/imperial debate and whose opinions are biased.   Check out this site:   http://www.open2.net/forum/thread.jspa?threadID=3448&tstart=0   Excerpt:   Both the first and 6-th posting:   riane martin metres and yards Posted: 15-Aug-2005 10:41   Reply I find it progressive that more people now say "metre" instead of yards without any formal requirement to do so and equally as surprised as "yards" are still on our road sings. Is amazing the Transport Department hasn't noticed this huge skip in word use and helped us move on like the rest of the Commonwealth ( err..the world really). Hearing someone say "yards" just sounds old fashioned now.       Elk Re: metres and yards Posted: 16-Aug-2005 22:27   Reply I would say that there are plenty of people perpetuating the imperial 'dream', Penz. But as the original posting suggests, it is the 'metric dream' that is becoming 'the norm' now. I have to say that I hear metres used when once yards was used. The more it's heard the more it becomes part of the language. The same must be said for kilo, litre, grams and even 'mils' I think that's millilitres, not miles! I only really expect older people to say yards, gallons & lbs now.         Here was a cute exchange.  I wonder if Riane can be accused of being a bit sharp tongued towards Molly.  without actually calling Molly stupid and ignorant, she sort of implied it.  She also mocked imperial by stating it is old like the Roman Empire.  People like Molly shame themselves and deserve to have their shame mocked by others.  Why should people who hold back progress be treated as if they are doing a good thing?        Molly Re: metres and yards Posted: 17-Aug-2005 10:30   Reply I'm not old and I am a scientist. I understand tiny quantities such as microlitres, etc, but when it comes to larger quantities I always think in imperial. When I cook, I use pounds and ounces, when I'm travelling anywhere I always use miles. New mums and dads still want their babies weighed in pounds and ounces, not kilograms. I certainly don't want my yards shifted to metres. Riane Martin Re: metres and yards Posted: 17-Aug-2005 11:13   Reply Well Molly, I guess you're entitled to convert every price into shillings and guineas too if it makes you feel happy, but as a qualified State Enrolled Nurse I can assure you that babies are weighed, fed and monitored in grams and kilos! If a baby was found to be 20% underweight I wonder what an "imperial enthusiast" would do to work that out? You'd have to use metric I am afraid!! 3 kg baby, 20% of 3000 g is 600 g. Done in ones head! As weighing babies is a matter of life or death I hope you will learn some metric even for yourself. Patients are weighed in kg as medication is prescribed ( on planet earth) per kg of body weight. In an emergency, calculating and converting from the measurements of Ancient Roman empire ( "LB"- LiBra=pound ) could easily cost lives. That's why we're changing to make lives easier and safer. Must be fun converting all the recipes to imperial..as nearly all in UK are metric only now ( except for Delia Smith who seems to cling relentlessly to the old money. Go Nigella and Jamie!!)