----- Original Message ----- From: STANLEY DOORE To: Potomac River Basin Sent: Friday, January 26, 2007 5:20 AM Subject: Use metric units
FROM: G. STANLEY DOORE 2913 Shanandale Drive Silver Spring, MD 20904-1822 Tel.: 301.572.4939 E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 2007 January 26 TO: Potomac River Basin Commission 51 Monroe Street Suite PE-08 Rockville MD 20850 Thanks for your Potomac Basin Reporter. And thanks for the article titled "Free Water for Everyone" in the Nov/Dec issue. The article would be much more useful and understandable if you used the SI (International System of Units) instead of conventional English units of measurement. Why? The SI is a coherent system where length, volume and weight are interrelated and are easy to use. For example: One cubic meter of water contains 1000 liters (kL or kiloliter) which weighs (has a mass of) one metric tonne since one liter of water weights one kilogram (2.2 pounds). A meter is a little more than a yard in length. Also, one millimeter (1/1000 of a meter) of rain in one square meter equals one liter of water. See how it all fits together? The U.S. Metric Association (USMA) has a great chart which shows the relationship of standard metric units. The USMA web site is: www.metric.org. I recommend you begin to use the SI as the basic system of measurement. I look forward to seeing it used in the future. Regards, G Stanley Doore Meteorologist Retired
