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I see that this discussion went all over the place....
But, the metric system is an important issue to me, and many people that are involved in global trade.
First off - I feel that the metric system is convenient for production of products. It is economical (time wise) and easier to use when following measurements on blueprints, checking measurements, and making adjustments.
I get inquiries from overseas for US made products - But, often lose some of these export opportunities because many producers here do not cut or make their products in metric. And, I am sure many others are losing opportunities...And, this would certainly help increase exports in the production industries we have left in this country...
The one big obstacle to converting is of course the expenses of changing production equipment/machinery. Some companies are converting over (with new machinery purchases). But, I think that this should be one of the priorities in this country - It is certainly more important (for the long term good of this country) than some of the other government supported projects (such as the pork projects).
Wow, I'm surprized. I thought for sure a this thread would evolve into tandem pleas for the use of Esperanto.
I know both systems of measurement well enough, and conversions don't bother me all that much. To be perfectly honest, I think knowing both gives me greater flexibility when I'm building, talking about travel, bottles of wine, or whatever.
Location: Mableton, GA USA (NW Atlanta suburb, 4 miles OTP)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mtb83201
We are far overdue for going metric. That is all I have to say.
Hey man, even the UK is still using miles to measure distance and pints to measure beer. If the former owner of the American Colonies can't convert to Metric yet, why should we be expected to? :-)
(For those who weren't aware, distance and speeds are still miles and miles per hour on all roads in England, Scotland, and Wales. I'm not sure about Ireland because I've not driven there, but we saw no exceptions at all when I was over there ten years ago, and I'm sure it hasn't changed since).
Why are we measuring things with the King's foot? I thought we overthrew the King during the Revolution.
Now that the mandatory 30-year protest period is over, I think we will start seeing changes very soon. Another innovation that was introduced at that time, the dollar coin, might also take hold soon. I think we will also see the dollar bill withdrawn and replaced with the dollar coin once those nitcumpoops figure out the art of transition. HDTV will surely go through this same process SI metric and the dollar coin went through for the past 30 years.
In ten years, do you think that Daylight Saving Time will be abolished when it turns 30?
I sure am glad that the metric fad faded out after the 1970s.
I prefer referring to car engines as "440 cubic inches" or " 472 cubic inches" instead of "7.2 L" or "7.7 L." "440" sounds a lot meaner than "7.2 L."
I also like to refer to a hot day as 90 degrees, not 40 degrees C (or whatever it is). Also, the graduations on a Fahrenheit thermometer are closer together than on a Celcius thermometer which means that the Fahrenheit scale is a more precise one... it takes less of a temperature change to register. For instance from 70 degrees F to 71 degrees F compared to 20 degrees C to 21 degrees C.
Yes, you do have to learn that one mile=5280 feet or that 1/4 mile=1320... so? People learn it all the time and it's a lot easier to learn than algebra!
I sure am glad that the metric fad faded out after the 1970s.
I prefer referring to car engines as "440 cubic inches" or " 472 cubic inches" instead of "7.2 L" or "7.7 L." "440" sounds a lot meaner than "7.2 L."
I also like to refer to a hot day as 90 degrees, not 40 degrees C (or whatever it is). Also, the graduations on a Fahrenheit thermometer are closer together than on a Celcius thermometer which means that the Fahrenheit scale is a more precise one... it takes less of a temperature change to register. For instance from 70 degrees F to 71 degrees F compared to 20 degrees C to 21 degrees C.
Yes, you do have to learn that one mile=5280 feet or that 1/4 mile=1320... so? People learn it all the time and it's a lot easier to learn than algebra!
And I'm glad that the decimalized currency fad faded out after 1900.
I prefer dealing in £sd. (pounds, shillings, and pence). It's very simple: 1 pound=20 shillings=240 pence and that 1 shilling=12 pence. I like to refer to £1 1s. as £1 1s or a Guinea. not £1.05. I don't like the many coins that I use to pay the decimalized £1.05. (Can you imagine that you can use one coin for buying that 99¢ offer and pay the sales tax?)
The £sd. system has finer graduations than dollars and cents. 6 shillings and 3 pence would be around 31.25¢. It could be 31.2435¢. See how it is more accurate?
You do have to learn the values of the many coins and their names. Examples like the farthing=1/4 p., the half-penny, threepence, sixpence, two shilling, half-crown=2 s. 6p., and the crown=5 s. People learn it all the time and it's easier than algebra.
I think the reason we aren't doing metric now is because conservatives currently run the white house...please go for it
I believe Bush and definitely Big Business supports the metric adoption, but he is distracted by the War in Iraq right now. If the war ends, he can pursue the domestic policies that he was supposed to tackle.
There's a reason that the metric system is popular in the rest of the world, it is easier to use!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fleet
I sure am glad that the metric fad faded out after the 1970s.
I prefer referring to car engines as "440 cubic inches" or " 472 cubic inches" instead of "7.2 L" or "7.7 L." "440" sounds a lot meaner than "7.2 L."
I also like to refer to a hot day as 90 degrees, not 40 degrees C (or whatever it is). Also, the graduations on a Fahrenheit thermometer are closer together than on a Celcius thermometer which means that the Fahrenheit scale is a more precise one... it takes less of a temperature change to register. For instance from 70 degrees F to 71 degrees F compared to 20 degrees C to 21 degrees C.
Yes, you do have to learn that one mile=5280 feet or that 1/4 mile=1320... so? People learn it all the time and it's a lot easier to learn than algebra!
How many cubic inches are in a gallon? Make that a U.S. Gallon NOT an Imperial Gallon. I need to know how much oil to put in my car and the bulk oil came in these new gallon sizes.
It's now officially Celsius not Centigrade. I also like to refer to a hot day as 35 °C not 95 °F. Did you know that 35 °C is 35/100 of the boiling point. What's the difference between 70 and 71 °F? If you told me that the thermometer cooled down to 70 °F, I couldn't tell the difference. But how could you read the thermometer with all the graduations of 1 °F? In Celsius, each mark is usually 2 °C. I could literally feel the difference between 25 and 26 °C.
Speaking of graduations I cannot use the inch-side of the ruler because I cannot figure out the fractions of an inch accurately. Which is the 1/16ths of an inch, the 1/8th of an inch and 1/4 of an inch. This is why I usually use the metric side of the ruler since all graduations are 0.1 cm. Hopefully the bridge collapse wasn't caused by erroneous arithmetic or mis-measurement during construction.
What temperature is half boiling? It's (100/2=)50 °C. I tried to use Fahrenheit but it was too trouble some. (212/2)+32 was 138 °F but converting from C to F was 122 °F which is the correct answer.
Apparently you didn't notice that a kilometer (1 km) is 1000 meters and that 500 m is 0.500 km.
Wow, I'm surprized. I thought for sure a this thread would evolve into tandem pleas for the use of Esperanto.
I know both systems of measurement well enough, and conversions don't bother me all that much. To be perfectly honest, I think knowing both gives me greater flexibility when I'm building, talking about travel, bottles of wine, or whatever.
If we were talking about the Gregorian Calendar, you might be the one who brings up Popery to the point that it sounds like and gets as intense as the immigration issue.
I know the Julian and Gregorian calendars well enough and conversions don't bother me much. I think knowing both gives me greater flexibility when I travel around the world or to an Eastern Orthodox Church.
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A light hearted response...
