The armstretch is slightly in excess of 201 cm? I find this improbable, as a human unit. I am 194 cm tall. Statistical charts indicate that is in excess of 99% of the population. People were a lot shorter back in this time frame. I struggle to reach 199 cm as an armstretch, and have to stretch uncomfortable. I can NOT make 201 cm. I doubt anyone alive in that era could span 201 cm.
The armstretch may have been that distance, and it may have been called an armstretch, but I don't think it was a human body measurement of anybody (well, maybe an alien). The normal armspan is pretty close to height (as you see, I can get 5 cm over). I would guess in this era very few men could span in excess of 170-175 cm ________________________________ From: Pat Naughtin <[email protected]> To: U.S. Metric Association <[email protected]> Cc: UKMA Metric Association <[email protected]>; USMA Metric Association <[email protected]>; John Bailes <[email protected]> Sent: Wed, June 1, 2011 10:25:54 PM Subject: [USMA:50544] Re: Origin of the metric system On 2011/01/18, at 09:47 , [email protected] wrote: Hi, Pat >Happy New Year to you. >When we refer to British Weights and Measures, we are referring to the >imperial >system, as defined in the early 1800s (thus differing from American units in >so >far as fluid measures are concerned) >We do not take nationalities of individuals into account; so, we do not >include >metric units in our remit >Best regards, >John >BWMA > Dear John, BWMA, Further to your email, I know that you will interested in this extract from Keith Gordon Irwin's book, "The Romance of Weights and Measures" where he quotes extensively from Flinders Petrie's article about the weights and measures of England of about 1000 years ago (see article initialled MFP in the Encyclopaedia Britannica 1911). I have included other measurement associations in case they have not seen this reference before. The third Cc: is to the Canadian Metric Association. Cheers, Pat Naughtin Geelong, Australia -----Original Message----- >From: Pat Naughtin <[email protected]> >To: [email protected] >Cc: [email protected] >Sent: Fri, Jan 14, 2011 8:46 pm >Subject: Origin of the metric system > > >Dear Lee Consterdine, > > >As I have not had a response to my email of August last year, I am sending it >to >you again. Perhaps I had the wrong address. > > >Cheers, > > >Pat Naughtin >Geelong, Australia > > >I noted on your web page at http://www.bwmaonline.com that the: > >BWMA exists to protect and promote British weights and measures, > >Knowing this, I thought that you might be interested in a web page about the >origin of the metric system in Oxford, Cambridge, and London. > > >http://www.metricationmatters.com/who-invented-the-metric-system.html > > >I will quote a few paragraphs from the web page. > > >An English bishop, John Wilkins, (1614-1672) invented the system part of the >decimal metric system when he published a book with a plan for a 'universal >measure' in 1668. To be more exact, Bishop Wilkins released his plan for what >became the decimal metric system on Monday, 1668 April 13 when the Royal >Society >published 'AN ESSAY Towards a REAL CHARACTER, And a PHILOSOPHICAL LANGUAGE'. >I think that it is fair to say that John Wilkins 'invented' the system we now >use in the dictionary sense of the word invented (invent: to create by >thought, >originate, new method, ... Australian Concise Oxford Dictionary) because, >although the parts had been around for a while, it was Wilkins' plan for a >system that could be used to measure all things based on a single universal >measure, that was completely new. >Bishop John Wilkins was, among other things: Warden of Wadham College, Oxford; >Master of Trinity College, Cambridge; married to Oliver Cromwell’s sister; >writer of the first book in English on secret codes; writer of one of the >first >science fiction books about a trip to the Moon; and convener and chairman of >the >first meeting of the Royal Society, still one of the world's most important >science academies. >Wilkins' short proposal for a 'universal measure' in 1668 contained almost all >the elements of the International System of Units (SI), the modern metric >system. Wilkins devised a decimal system with a universal standard of length, >preferably based on accurately measuring the Earth or time, and wrote that >this >standard length could then be used to define area, volume, and 'weight' using >distilled rainwater. > >= Pat Naughtin LCAMS Author of the ebook, Metrication Leaders Guide, see http://metricationmatters.com/MetricationLeadersGuideInfo.html Hear Pat speak at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lshRAPvPZY PO Box 305 Belmont 3216, Geelong, Australia Phone: 61 3 5241 2008 Metric system consultant, writer, and speaker, Pat Naughtin, has helped thousands of people and hundreds of companies upgrade to the modern metric system smoothly, quickly, and so economically that they now save thousands each year when buying, processing, or selling for their businesses. Pat provides services and resources for many different trades, crafts, and professions for commercial, industrial and government metrication leaders in Asia, Europe, and in the USA. Pat's clients include the Australian Government, Google, NASA, NIST, and the metric associations of Canada, the UK, and the USA. See http://www.metricationmatters.com for more metrication information, contact Pat at [email protected] or to get the free 'Metrication matters' newsletter go to: http://www.metricationmatters.com/newsletter to subscribe.
