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The BBC uses Celsius mainly and so does all UK weather sites.
I still see both however the government is trying hard to push kg's and Celsius on to us (but strangely enough not kph??). Have you noticed that in the UK when its cold people tend to use Celsius and when its hot they use Farenheight? eg its cold its only 5 degrees or its hot its in the nineties!! lol
We have a 'cafe culture' here too but it's partly to do with climate. However, alfresco dining didn't become popular here until after the War. It was the Italians who started doing it. Australia in the 40s and 50s was a very Anglo-Saxon place. Spaghetti was considered ethnic food and was eaten out of a can. We have a strong Southern European influence here.
When I came to Melbourne in the 70's there was no cafe culture here then, and certainly no alfresco dining, apart from backyard BBQ. China Town was the most popular place to eat apart from the Italian places in Lygon St. Pub counter tea was popular and cheap.
I still see both however the government is trying hard to push kg's and Celsius on to us (but strangely enough not kph??). Have you noticed that in the UK when its cold people tend to use Celsius and when its hot they use Farenheight? eg its cold its only 5 degrees or its hot its in the nineties!! lol
The official Canadian weather service has two schemes, one C-km and one F-mile... Sounds more consistent.
In science people use km, m, cm and Celsius anyway, even in the US.
I do realise that Britain is classed as European, but you could drive from Germany to Greece and stay on the same side of the road, you would know how far you have to go in Kilometres and also know how fast you are travelling because your speedometer would tell you in kph, when you get to Greece you could sit in a cafe/bar and get served by a waiter, and then when you're done you would pay him using the same cash that you had in your pocket when in Germany. I do know that Greece and Germany have their own very distinct culture, of course they do but they also share a common European culture. I also know that there is European influence in the UK, of course there is but I think less so - that's all. I do believe Britains on the whole feel closer to Anglo nations than they do European ones (because of historical links, popular culture and the shared language) but that doesn't mean I feel that Britain doesn't share any cultural links (football) or have any connections to Europe at all!! On a side note wasn't it longer than a couple of thousand years ago that Britain was connected to the continent?
The US also drives on a different side of the road, also uses a different currency, also has different measurements (e.g. Fahrenheit instead of Celsius for temperature), is also separated by a body of water, and yet you say it's closer to the UK than any country in Europe?
I don't consider currency, the metric system or driving on the left/right side of the road really part of "culture". I think culture goes a little deeper than that. Greece has a completely different language, a different alphabet, a different religion and religious adherence, a different cuisine, a different economic development, etc. Those things far outweigh the superficial similarities you mentioned.
Here's some posts from the General U.S. Forum I made arguing the US has more in common with the UK than the rest of Europe.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nei
The UK also has the most pro-unregulated free market political culture in Europe. The political culture is more familiar to an American. A Margaret Thatcher free market conservative would be unlikely in continental Europe, and there's more of a culture of capitalism a force to be tamed in continental Europe. It also had the closest resembling a two party system in Europe, and the least prone to illiberal, anti-freedom policies. Unlike much of Europe, there was never much of a fascist or communist movement nor the tradition of revolutionary violence. The UK has the highest income inequality in Western Europe, closest to the US, and has the most decayed rust-belt cities. The cities also built in a way that they tend to avoid apartment blocks, unlike many older continental European cities, but similar to many American ones, though they have lots and lots of rowhouses, not unlike older parts of eastern PA. Its mill architecture resembles New England, though yes, British influence is more obvious here.
In many ways, a lot of what makes the US unique is what made the UK somewhat different from the rest of continental Europe and taken to its extreme once the settlers were free to create a new society.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nei
Maybe. But British books, movies and music are more well-known than continental European ones. There's a lot more cultural contact, a German or Russian George Orwell or C.S. Lewis would have been less mainstream and more foreign.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nei
One of the other thing that makes the connection more clear, Canada across the border has far more British heritage than the US and a British government and legal system. And just connected for far longer. But other than government, culturally, English-speaking Canada doesn't feel drastically different from the US. In fact, for what I can tell, much of the South has more differences with the much of the north than the north with Canada.
So even, though Canada would seem like it would be far more British, it's still similar to the US. Why? Because they're both settler states started by the British and underwent similar changes in a new world.
I didn't say that Britain didn't share any culture with Europe at all, surely you can see why Britain's feel so close to other Anglo nations though?
That is exactly my point. In my view it is not about whether or not Britain shares any culture with Europe at all, but in my view it shares just as much culture with Europe as Germany or Spain or Italy does. Britain has always been one of the core countries of Europe, after all it already existed long before it had any colonies. There have always been close connections between Britain and Germany, for instance, even on the royal level. And of course the Celtic and Roman history long before that...
The US also drives on a different side of the road, also uses a different currency, also has different measurements (e.g. Fahrenheit instead of Celsius for temperature), is also separated by a body of water, and yet you say it's closer to the UK than any country in Europe?
I don't consider currency, the metric system or driving on the left/right side of the road really part of "culture". I think culture goes a little deeper than that. Greece has a completely different language, a different alphabet, a different religion and religious adherence, a different cuisine, a different economic development, etc. Those things far outweigh the superficial similarities you mentioned.
I think the US is closer culturally to the UK than any other country in Europe, did you read my previous posts about music, television and films? Don't you think that the shared language would have a big impact!? Do you know the historical links between the US and the UK, or the UK and Australia? Of course this will have an affect on the British psyche , I am not saying that Britains don't have any cultural links with Europe because of course it does, but in Britain we unfortunately don't have hardly any access to European music, European TV or European films and in this day sand age its this 'media' that connects people.
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