If we had a dram of sense in the U.S., we'd go metric! Main Entry: 1dram Pronunciation: 'dram Function: noun Etymology: Middle English dragme, from Anglo-French & Late Latin; Anglo-French, dram, drachma, from Late Latin dragma, from Latin drachma, from Greek drachmE, literally, handful, from drassesthai to grasp 1 a -- see WEIGHT table b : FLUID DRAM 2 a : a small portion of something to drink b : a small amount
So, in other words, a dram was akin to a pinch!! It is a little-known fact that the fluid ounce can be subdivided into 8 fluid drams. An old-time topically applied toothache-numbing remedy called Jiffy Toothache Drops used to be labeled in that volume. I think it is still on the market, but is labeled 1/8 (one eighth) fluid ounce (3.7 mL). Just as an interesting aside, the active ingredient in this product used to be chloroform! Today, I believe it is benzocaine. Shakespeare's Romeo was heard to ask an apothecary for a "dram of poison." All of the above is part of why I, as a pharmacist, originally joined the fight for a metric America. I believe that it is dangerous for healthcare to be saddled with two systems of measurement. Quoting Scott Hudnall <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > I think words persist long after anyone know their meaning. For instance, > video is mostly digital these days, and measured in by time index in seconds, > rather than by the foot - but the term "footage" still persists. > > I am almost 40 years old, and have taken medications only in milligrams my > whole life. Since I was never taught the unit "grains" in school, it was not > until I began participating on this listserve that I understood the phrase > "take it with a grain of salt" was referring to an actual quantity. > > In Canada, vehicle mileage is listed in kilometers. Here is a link for a car > for sale .. check it out! > http://driving.canada.com/buy/used/details.spy?carid=1385886 > > > On Tuesday, July 10, 2007, at 02:29PM, "Michael Palumbo" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > wrote: > >This may seem like a silly question, but it's been bothering me lately. > > > >In colloquial English, we have a lot of odd phrases & words that refer > >to our customary/imperial system of measure. A few that come to mind are: > >- Mileage > >- Milestone > >- Mile a minute > >- Miles & miles > >- Missed by a mile > >- Inched forward > >- Every inch a [blank], i.e. "every inch a king". > >- Inch by inch > >- Within an inch of > >- The whole nine yards > > > >The list goes on and on. > > > >Both the beauty and difficulty of our language is how much of it is > >culled from other sources. So what are we to do with such phrases? > >Should we even trouble ourselves to their existence? With words such as > >"mileage", is there a metric substitute such as "metreage"? It doesn't > >make sense to me to say, "My auto has low mileage" when I'm not counting > >it's use in miles. Should we start referring to project progress points > >as "kilostones"? ;) > > > >Cheers, > >Mike > > > > > > > > -- Paul Trusten, R.Ph. Public Relations Director U.S. Metric Association, Inc. Phone (432)528-7724 www.metric.org 3609 Caldera Boulevard, Apartment 122 Midland TX 79707-2872 USA mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://oleapothecary.blog.com
