Pierre Abbat wrote: "Mg" is two symbols. If you have 1 Mg Mg, how many
flashbulbs could you make?

None. Magnesium-based flashbulb manufacturing is a thing of the past. ;-)

Do you remember those 4-in-1 flashbulbs that would rotate 90 degrees after
each flash?

Flashbulbs were often an indication of the extreme stupidity of those using
them. Imagine people at a ball game thinking their little flashbulb would
illuminate the whole stadium. I remember seeing a tourist on the observation
deck of the Empire State Building using a flashbulb when photographing the
view. My attempt to convey the significance of the inverse square law fell
upon deaf ears.

That was fifty years ago. High school science education hasn't really
deteriorated in the last half century. It was already bad.

Bill
________________________________
Bill Potts
WFP Consulting
1848 Hidden Hills Drive
Roseville, CA 95661-5804
Phone: 916 773-3865
Cell: 916 302-7176

-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf
Of Pierre Abbat
Sent: Wednesday, July 09, 2008 08:25
To: U.S. Metric Association
Subject: [USMA:41353] RE: symbols vs. abbreviations

On Wednesday 09 July 2008 00:35:47 Martin Vlietstra wrote:
> A power supply of 1 mW can power a hearing aid, while 1 MW can power 
> the air conditioning system of a small building.

1 mL fits in a thimble. 1 ML is the volume of the four apartments in this
building put together. I see that error commonly on bottles.

1 s is a time interval. 1 S is an electrical conductivity.

I also see "km/hr" occasionally and think "Kilometers per hryvnia?"

"Mg" is two symbols. If you have 1 Mg Mg, how many flashbulbs could you
make?

Pierre

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