Well, I think we should tell non-metric friends simply that a cubic meter of air weighs one kilo, and a cubic meter of water weighs one metric ton. No one knows what a tonne is (it's not even in the spell-check dictionary on my computer!), but "metric ton" is used in the media a lot and is somewhat familiar, and I don't care much. I am as much a proponent of metrication as anyone, but I find the use of "weigh" just fine.
I think people can visualize a cubic meter much better than 1000 liter bottles stacked together. If you imagine a stack of such cubes containing air or water, you can get a grip on the weight--or mass if you prefer--of a column of air extending up to space, or the weight of a column of water extending down to the ocean floor. I like to tell folks that a kilometer is a distance two and one half times around a running track, or about from here to (describe a nearby location). HARRY WYETH ----- Original Message ----- From: STANLEY DOORE To: U.S. Metric Association Sent: Saturday, May 05, 2007 05:57 Subject: [USMA:38594] People oriented metric use Here' a way to help the public understand metric and the impact of wind and water such as floods, storm surges, tornadoes, hurricanes, rivers, lakes, ponds, wind speed, etc. on people, their safety and the environment in every day life. 1 kg/kL of air at the surface is about one kilogram (2.2 pounds) per kilolitre (cubic metre) 1 t/kL of water has a mass of one metric tonne (1000 kilograms or 2200 pounds) per kilolitre (cubic metre) Let's learn to think metric with its cohesive characteristics in the International System of Units (SI). Regards, Stan Doore
