The term “bilingual” means different things to different people. In South Africa, I would say that I speak both English and Afrikaans, but I would not describe myself as being bilingual as my command of English is obviously much better than my command of Afrikaans. In the United Kingdom, I would describe myself as being bilingual in that I can conduct a conversation in Afrikaans without having to resort to English.
I regard myself as being “bilingual” in terms of units of measurement in that I can work equally well in either imperial or metric units and I can flip between the two. In my view, unless you have that sort of competence in both systems of units, you cannot describe yourself as being” bilingual”. Finally, when I was at school, I was taught “Ek moenie my languages mix nie”, which, in the case of the US, I would rewrite as „No debo mix mis languages”. From: USMA <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Peter Goodyear Sent: 07 August 2021 01:28 To: U.S. Metric Association <[email protected]> Subject: [USMA 1787] An article in the Wall Street Journal discusses America's metrication Hi, everyone, There is an article in the Wall Street Journal dated 2021-08-06, discussing the state of America’s metrication. It’s here: https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsj.com%2Farticles%2Fwill-the-u-s-ever-go-metric-it-already-has-sort-of-11628242201&data=04%7C01%7Cusma%40lists.colostate.edu%7Cd900db6603274ceb25bc08d959770c9a%7Cafb58802ff7a4bb1ab21367ff2ecfc8b%7C0%7C0%7C637639190114477356%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=E9Iff44TnDF1TT2MAdZ2emqlNJw2ARciRwxlVaIJj7c%3D&reserved=0 <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsj.com%2Farticles%2Fwill-the-u-s-ever-go-metric-it-already-has-sort-of-11628242201&data=04%7C01%7Cusma%40lists.colostate.edu%7Cd900db6603274ceb25bc08d959770c9a%7Cafb58802ff7a4bb1ab21367ff2ecfc8b%7C0%7C0%7C637639190114477356%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=E9Iff44TnDF1TT2MAdZ2emqlNJw2ARciRwxlVaIJj7c%3D&reserved=0> Unfortunately you need a subscription to read beyond the opening paragraphs. I don’t know if they just mean registration or a financial subscription. Either way I’m out. Up to the present the WSJ has been very much anti-metric, so if we have any WSJ subscribers out there I would be interested to know what conclusion the article reaches. One of my pet peeves is evident, the use of both US and metric measurement systems is described as being “bilingual”. This is one of the few cases where being “bilingual” is more of a handicap than an asset. The article opens with: Will the U.S. Ever Go Metric? It Already Has, Sort Of By Jo Craven McGinty August 6, 2021 The country has been creeping toward the metric system for decades, and is fully bilingual when it comes to discussing weights and measures The U.S. never fully mandated the use of the meter, liter and gram, but for decades, the country has inched toward the metric system anyway. Medicines are dosed in milligrams. Beverages are bottled in liters. Athletes run 5K races. And while gasoline is sold by the gallon, an automobile’s engine is measured in liters. These changes have augmented the U.S. customary system of measurements <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fecampusontario.pressbooks.pub%2Fbasickitchenandfoodservicemanagement%2Fchapter%2Fimperial-and-u-s-systems-of-measurement%2F&data=04%7C01%7Cusma%40lists.colostate.edu%7Cd900db6603274ceb25bc08d959770c9a%7Cafb58802ff7a4bb1ab21367ff2ecfc8b%7C0%7C0%7C637639190114477356%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=%2FuCHjvh4Jh5r9KwIwb2mJK82cA5OIgxmAvS7%2BkVpOUw%3D&reserved=0> , but they haven’t replaced it. Weight is still measured in pounds, height in feet, distance in miles, property in acres and recipe ingredients in spoons and cups. “We’re much more bilingual than we want to admit,” said Stephen Mihm, a history professor at the University of Georgia who has researched U.S. weights and measures. “We don’t think anything of going into a grocery store and buying half a pound of turkey and two liters of soda and putting them in the same grocery cart and walking out. That’s just what we do.” This topic has been posted to Reddit’s metric forum and comments will be here: https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reddit.com%2Fr%2FMetric%2Fcomments%2Fozikn2%2Fan_article_in_the_wall_street_journal_discusses%2F&data=04%7C01%7Cusma%40lists.colostate.edu%7Cd900db6603274ceb25bc08d959770c9a%7Cafb58802ff7a4bb1ab21367ff2ecfc8b%7C0%7C0%7C637639190114487350%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=JyhmxXKsXY7L09jqBhi05hGcTLk%2FnkFH03y5ZScIoVQ%3D&reserved=0 <https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reddit.com%2Fr%2FMetric%2Fcomments%2Fozikn2%2Fan_article_in_the_wall_street_journal_discusses%2F&data=04%7C01%7Cusma%40lists.colostate.edu%7Cd900db6603274ceb25bc08d959770c9a%7Cafb58802ff7a4bb1ab21367ff2ecfc8b%7C0%7C0%7C637639190114487350%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=JyhmxXKsXY7L09jqBhi05hGcTLk%2FnkFH03y5ZScIoVQ%3D&reserved=0> Best wishes, Peter Goodyear, Melbourne, Australia e-mail: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>
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