The Metric System

[barsie]

America is merely 1 country yet you compare it to a continent- the other 6 billion people don't care what 1 country uses.

Oh how very wrong you are. The businessmen among those 6 billion other people care very much about using the correct measurements when buying or selling products to or from the world's largest economy and largest importer of goods.

You mean the most in debt economy in the world don't you? Your response is exactly what you'd expect off some Americans.

[Groongthep]

America is merely 1 country yet you compare it to a continent- the other 6 billion people don't care what 1 country uses.

Oh how very wrong you are. The businessmen among those 6 billion other people care very much about using the correct measurements when buying or selling products to or from the world's largest economy and largest importer of goods.

You mean the most in debt economy in the world don't you? Your response is exactly what you'd expect off some Americans.

Just exactly what does debt have to do with systems of measurements? Your inane response is exactly what you'd expect of someone who cannot defend their position with logic.

[longstebe]

the mystery is how this lady did not know how many meters in a kilometer or how many 250g tubs would = 1 kilogram. Maybe he should of asked the genius if she earns $250k a year how many years it would take to make a million.

:lol:

[Jimi007]

Yes the metric system is and was taught in the USA. Some people never use it so they don't remember it or maybe they were home sick from school that week. How many Europeans know the US system of measurements? And how many can remember how to convert from one system to the other. I remember some; like 3.78 liters to a US gallon, 39 inches to a meter, 1.6 kilometers to a mile... For others I have a converter program on my phone and my computer...

You actually prove the point I was going to make. America is merely 1 country yet you compare it to a continent- the other 6 billion people don't care what 1 country uses.

I think it shows how insular America is. Understanding imperial and metric is not an issue of education it's basic general knowledge. I'm guessing you'd find the same talking to some americans about currency exchanges

Wow, there's 6 billion people in Europe now? That's really crowded!

[rijb]

America is merely 1 country yet you compare it to a continent- the other 6 billion people don't care what 1 country uses.

Oh how very wrong you are. The businessmen among those 6 billion other people care very much about using the correct measurements when buying or selling products to or from the world's largest economy and largest importer of goods.

You mean the most in debt economy in the world don't you? Your response is exactly what you'd expect off some Americans.

You might want to google your ass-umptions before you make an 'ass' out of yourself.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sovereign_states_by_public_debt

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/eco_pub_deb-economy-public-debt

http://www.mapsofworld.com/world-top-ten/countries-most-in-debt-map.html

(I hope I didn't make a typical American response...)

[dumball]

Strange , some of the comments here about metric in the Uk , when i was educated in jolly old England in the late fourties/fifties , I was taught both Imperial and Metric measure , this came in handy when dealing with the import of Japanese m/cycles and repair/overhaul of same

In the late sixties in Canada , this enabled me to assist my children to get a grasp of the Metric system when it was introduced to the education system , but these days , having been away from the usage of both on a daily basis for quite some years , those rapid conversions in the head tend to elude me

[barsie]

America is merely 1 country yet you compare it to a continent- the other 6 billion people don't care what 1 country uses.

Oh how very wrong you are. The businessmen among those 6 billion other people care very much about using the correct measurements when buying or selling products to or from the world's largest economy and largest importer of goods.

You mean the most in debt economy in the world don't you? Your response is exactly what you'd expect off some Americans.

Just exactly what does debt have to do with systems of measurements? Your inane response is exactly what you'd expect of someone who cannot defend their position with logic.

I do very much look forward to the dollar plunging below 30 BHT/$ and keep falling.

My point is more than proven- I called America insular, you couldn't help but argue how great America is....

[whybother]

Regardless of which system you use, surely people have been taught and remember that there are a thousand "whatever's" in a kilo"whatever".

IMO, the metric system makes more sense because it makes it easy to convert between small and large values of the same measurement, and being able to use the same conversion regardless of the measurement (ie m -> km, g -> kg).

But if you're brought up using another system, of course it's going to be difficult to relate systems that you don't use to the world around you. It's like saying something is four times the height of the Eiffel Tower - if you have no idea how high the Eiffel Tower is, then it's a useless measurement and comparison.

[Groongthep]

I do very much look forward to the dollar plunging below 30 BHT/$ and keep falling.

My point is more than proven- I called America insular, you couldn't help but argue how great America is....

No, you have proven no point whatsoever. Nowhere have I argued how great America is. All I said was that it is the world's largest economy which is a simple statistic, not a hubristic proclamation. The original topic was systems of measurements which you have decided to twist into another depressing and mindless thread of bashing and bullsh1t. When your allegations were challenged you avoided rational argument and stooped to childish name-calling. Your arguments, if you can call them that, are both depressing and delusional.

[Jimi007]

Regardless of which system you use, surely people have been taught and remember that there are a thousand "whatever's" in a kilo"whatever".

IMO, the metric system makes more sense because it makes it easy to convert between small and large values of the same measurement, and being able to use the same conversion regardless of the measurement (ie m -> km, g -> kg).

But if you're brought up using another system, of course it's going to be difficult to relate systems that you don't use to the world around you. It's like saying something is four times the height of the Eiffel Tower - if you have no idea how high the Eiffel Tower is, then it's a useless measurement and comparison.

Yes the metric system is easier as it is a 10 based number system But since my brain relates to the system which I grew up with I do a lot of mental conversions. 1 Kilo = 1,000 grams = 2.2 US pounds. I mentioned in an earlier post some others I can easy convert in my head. Like a meter is a bit over 39 inches. A yard is 36 inches, there a three feet to a yard. So meters to feet isn't that hard, it's a bit over 3 feet.. Neither is liters to gallons. 3.79 liters per gallon so a bit less than 4 for a guesstamation. Centigrade to Fahrenheit is a little more difficult; 1.8+ 32=F. But it's almost C x 2 + 32... So, it's really not that difficult. Especially if you understand math., which is a language itself... I can also count in Thai, but have to convert when doing math as I don't think in Thai...

[uptoyoumyfriend]

if you really want to know how stupid the hole thing is just ask some Americans - how many feet to the mile-how many ounces to the gallon-

how many pounds to the ton ?

you don't have to tell me your findings-

if you then want to know more google :

jaywalking with jay leno

you can see the brightest of the bright at work there

:rolleyes:

[balo]

I grew up with the metric system only and I never understood inches, feet or gallon . It just makes no sense to me

[sirineou]

Personally I believe the metric system is superior, only in that it is based on the number 10 and a lot easier to calculate.

I am an American and have lived in the US system of measuring all my life,my brain is trained to visualize concepts in those terms, when I am told that a property is 1/4 of an acre and 70x125 feet, I immediately have a mental picture and know what can be done with it, the same applies to other measurements, a person who is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weights 160 LBS is immediately familiar to me,

When I cant use the Metric system, it is not because I am an Idiot, I know " centi" to be 100, Kilo to be 1.000 and deca to be 10, and if I think about it I can covert measurements from metric to US and back , but instinctively my brain can visualize in US measuring terms.

Hard to teach an Old dog new Tricks, I suspect the same applies to people using the Metric system.

[slapout]

As one member already noted, the present measurements used will probably be antiquated in the not too distant future. But to indicate someone is a moron/less intelligent than you or others, because they are not familiar with a measurement or system would seem to display a lack of tolerance. I know places on this planet where distance is measured in six packs, or chains depending on the distance your referring to and a dollar can be made up of 8 bits.I think we all have to be a little more accepting and less condemning of others on things they do not understand.

[StreetCowboy]

As a Canadian I was raised with the pounds, miles and gallons system. Then, in the mid 1970s we were changed over to the metric system. Prior to that we only had a semi working knowledge of the metric system, but didn't have to use it. My job as a log scaler meant I had to measure logs individually, and very often estimate (guess) lengths and diameters in feet and inches. Business counted on me being accurate, and millions of dollars changed hands using my calculations. When we changed from feet and inches to centimetres and meters our job changed dramatically. Even a new calibration called a "RAD" (short for radius) was introduced just so we could make a new formula to calculate the volume of a log. A RAD is two centimetres. The result was I became fluent in both systems.

However, I still bounce back and forth between feet and inches, and centimetres and kilometres. Unfortunately, the RAD has not become a common measurement. There is nothing between a centimetre and a meter in the metric system. Inches are still a practical measurement. Because the speedometers in all our vehicles in Canada are set up in Kilometres that is how I think most of the time.

It is sort of like knowing two separate languages where you have to bounce back and forth all the time. It takes a bit of thinking to get it right.

I'm an American who works in the marine petroleum transportation industry. For cargo, we use mostly imperial measurements in the US, metric measurements most everywhere else and at sea we still use archaic marine measurements such as cables, fathoms, shots and nautical miles among others. Luckily, nowadays the simple push of a button on a computer will convert any measurement system value into the value of any other system in less than a second.

How much is a shot? Where I grew up, it was generally quarter or fifth of a gill, in England generally a sixth, but now, I believe, standardised at 25 millilitres.

Is a pint in a pub still 568 millilitres?

? How long is a cable compared to a chain ?

Even on metric drawings, we still refer to mileage or chainage...

SC

Here's a question: Do you think that the imperial (actually US - Imperial is slightly different in some units - like pints particularly) system has survived in the US because it is easier to use than metric, or because it is more difficult?

[Thakkar]

Im american and it sounds like the woman you were speaking to was a moron.

Quick! How many centimorons in a moron?

[phetaroi]

All chemistry courses, high school thru college use the metric system. The liberal art graduates (BA) may have missed chemistry at university level and forgotten what was offered in high school.

Even before high school. Most elementary students have been exposed to the metric system, and in science classes in middle school (junior high) it is widely taught and used. But it's like anything once, once you don't use it on a regular basis, you forget it rather quickly.

Instead of being so amazed that Americans don't appear to know the metric system, give an average Thai person a little test on the metric system (not converting from metric to the American system, but just converting a few numbers in the metric system). Then come back and tell me "everyone else in the world knows the metric system".

[Carib]

Before WW 3 starts again on this forum, download the little conversion program which can be found on the link. It is for free, helpful, no viruses and will convert almost everything.

http://joshmadison.com/software/convert-for-windows/

[Jimi007]

Before WW 3 starts again on this forum, download the little conversion program which can be found on the link. It is for free, helpful, no viruses and will convert almost everything.

http://joshmadison.c...rt-for-windows/

If WW 3 does start, are the Americans going to have to save the world again? Just stirring the pot a bit!

[whybother]

<snip>

Here's a question: Do you think that the imperial (actually US - Imperial is slightly different in some units - like pints particularly) system has survived in the US because it is easier to use than metric, or because it is more difficult?

It has survived in the US because people don't like change.

[whybother]

As one member already noted, the present measurements used will probably be antiquated in the not too distant future. But to indicate someone is a moron/less intelligent than you or others, because they are not familiar with a measurement or system would seem to display a lack of tolerance. I know places on this planet where distance is measured in six packs, or chains depending on the distance your referring to and a dollar can be made up of 8 bits.I think we all have to be a little more accepting and less condemning of others on things they do not understand.

... which is the main reason I asked "does metric get taught in US schools?"

If someone in nearly anywhere in the world who grew up with the metric system didn't know how many yards in a mile, I wouldn't call them a moron. If someone in the US grew up without being taught about metric, and didn't know how many metres in a kilometre, I wouldn't call them a moron.

But given that it has been taught in US schools, and is used nearly everywhere else in the world, I would expect an American (particularly one outside the US) to at least know the basics of the metric system.

[wolf5370]

Before WW 3 starts again on this forum, download the little conversion program which can be found on the link. It is for free, helpful, no viruses and will convert almost everything.

http://joshmadison.c...rt-for-windows/

If WW 3 does start, are the Americans going to have to save the world again? Just stirring the pot a bit!

No doubt they will turn up late for the party as usual (and after being inited by the opposition via sinking of ships - be it the Lucitania or 9 at Pearl harbour) - but bring the biggest botle of bubbley (pop!) to get the party over quickly and with the biggest bang.

Edited September 5, 2010 by wolf5370

[Jimi007]

As one member already noted, the present measurements used will probably be antiquated in the not too distant future. But to indicate someone is a moron/less intelligent than you or others, because they are not familiar with a measurement or system would seem to display a lack of tolerance. I know places on this planet where distance is measured in six packs, or chains depending on the distance your referring to and a dollar can be made up of 8 bits.I think we all have to be a little more accepting and less condemning of others on things they do not understand.

... which is the main reason I asked "does metric get taught in US schools?"

If someone in nearly anywhere in the world who grew up with the metric system didn't know how many yards in a mile, I wouldn't call them a moron. If someone in the US grew up without being taught about metric, and didn't know how many metres in a kilometre, I wouldn't call them a moron.

But given that it has been taught in US schools, and is used nearly everywhere else in the world, I would expect an American (particularly one outside the US) to at least know the basics of the metric system.

I can't remember how many feet or yards are in a mile, as it isn't an easy number to remember; 5,280 feet or 1,760 yards. It's something I never use in day to day life. I can easily remember 8 ounces to a cup, 2 cups to a pint, 4 cups to a quart and 4 quarts to gallon. Or 16 ounces to a pound, 2,000 pounds to a (short) ton. But it is very easy to remember 1,000 meters in a kilometer as K represents 1,000 in math. The metric system is much easier, period.

[Jingthing]

<snip>

Here's a question: Do you think that the imperial (actually US - Imperial is slightly different in some units - like pints particularly) system has survived in the US because it is easier to use than metric, or because it is more difficult?

It has survived in the US because people don't like change.

Its part of what we call American Exceptionalism. Your rules and measures don't apply to us. We're special! Next ...

[wolf5370]

<snip>

Here's a question: Do you think that the imperial (actually US - Imperial is slightly different in some units - like pints particularly) system has survived in the US because it is easier to use than metric, or because it is more difficult?

It has survived in the US because people don't like change.

Its part of what we call American Exceptionalism. Your rules and measures don't apply to us. We're special! Next ...

I guess it will change over time as it did in the UK - as trading partners moved base (from joining the eec - 1973) from the Commonwealth to Europe - and as the USA slides and is gradually replaced as the worlds biggest paymaster by China (and India?). A Buddha said, all things are transient.

[Groongthep]

As a Canadian I was raised with the pounds, miles and gallons system. Then, in the mid 1970s we were changed over to the metric system. Prior to that we only had a semi working knowledge of the metric system, but didn't have to use it. My job as a log scaler meant I had to measure logs individually, and very often estimate (guess) lengths and diameters in feet and inches. Business counted on me being accurate, and millions of dollars changed hands using my calculations. When we changed from feet and inches to centimetres and meters our job changed dramatically. Even a new calibration called a "RAD" (short for radius) was introduced just so we could make a new formula to calculate the volume of a log. A RAD is two centimetres. The result was I became fluent in both systems.

However, I still bounce back and forth between feet and inches, and centimetres and kilometres. Unfortunately, the RAD has not become a common measurement. There is nothing between a centimetre and a meter in the metric system. Inches are still a practical measurement. Because the speedometers in all our vehicles in Canada are set up in Kilometres that is how I think most of the time.

It is sort of like knowing two separate languages where you have to bounce back and forth all the time. It takes a bit of thinking to get it right.

I'm an American who works in the marine petroleum transportation industry. For cargo, we use mostly imperial measurements in the US, metric measurements most everywhere else and at sea we still use archaic marine measurements such as cables, fathoms, shots and nautical miles among others. Luckily, nowadays the simple push of a button on a computer will convert any measurement system value into the value of any other system in less than a second.

How much is a shot? Where I grew up, it was generally quarter or fifth of a gill, in England generally a sixth, but now, I believe, standardised at 25 millilitres.

Is a pint in a pub still 568 millilitres?

I assume your question is rhetorical and somewhat toungue-in-cheek, but to be precise I was speaking of shots as nautical units of lenghth. One shot of anchor chain is 90 feet long.

How long is a cable compared to a chain ?

Even on metric drawings, we still refer to mileage or chainage...

In nautical terms a cable is also a unit of length. It is approximately one tenth of a traditional nautical mile or about 600 feet which is also 100 fathoms.

SC

Here's a question: Do you think that the imperial (actually US - Imperial is slightly different in some units - like pints particularly) system has survived in the US because it is easier to use than metric, or because it is more difficult?

I think that the Imperial system (which is ironically often referred to as the "English" system of measure in the US) has endured because of two major reasons. First and foremost because the retooling of all the machinery in the US to different sizes would be fantastically expensive. Secondly because the ageing population in the US is resistant to change. I don't think one can say that either system is harder or easier than the other without first considering which system the person in question grew up with. Metric is far more logical but try telling a 60+ year old American that it is easier and you will not find many agreeing with you. It's a different story of course if you ask a younger person who is familiar with the metric system from school and /or work.

[Jingthing]

<snip>

Here's a question: Do you think that the imperial (actually US - Imperial is slightly different in some units - like pints particularly) system has survived in the US because it is easier to use than metric, or because it is more difficult?

It has survived in the US because people don't like change.

Its part of what we call American Exceptionalism. Your rules and measures don't apply to us. We're special! Next ...

I guess it will change over time as it did in the UK - as trading partners moved base (from joining the eec - 1973) from the Commonwealth to Europe - and as the USA slides and is gradually replaced as the worlds biggest paymaster by China (and India?). A Buddha said, all things are transient.

The US population is much bigger than the UK and there is massive resistance to this kind of change, as evidenced by the last time we tried it. I agree, someday. Like 100 years someday.

[StreetCowboy]

<snip>

Here's a question: Do you think that the imperial (actually US - Imperial is slightly different in some units - like pints particularly) system has survived in the US because it is easier to use than metric, or because it is more difficult?

<endsnip>

Personally, I think my answer would be "Yes".

Politicians who are not obliged to work with quantitative measures can readily grasp US Customary measures (a bushel of dollar bills, nine yards of rope etc.) whereas industrialists see it as a barrier to trade from overseas and a form of protectionism that they can get away with.

I was surprised to learn that the Indians actually use a different set of numbers from the rest of us! How quaint is that? Just like the Chinese...

Maybe the Indians only use those numbers for money - the technical work I'm involved with is all in SI units, arabic numbers and English language

SC

[canuckamuck]

I was in elementary school when Canada switched to metric. Us kids didn't care, but the adults made a big fuss. I remember people being very angry. But I grew up to learn both systems and I can do conversions on the fly.

When I worked construction and on the farm in Canada everything was imperial, when I became a photographer, most everything was metric, especially in the lab.

I can understand why America doesn't want to switch, but saying neither system has an advantage is just wrong. The metric system is vastly superior because of it's 10 base system. No fractions ever. and to add to the advantage you get easy conversions between volume mass and dimension. A liter of water is 1 kilogram, none of this 16 of these in one of those and 12 of those is a whatsit 3 whatsits make watoosey.

The imperial system is easy if you were born with it, but it really does belong back in the 1900's.

[Wallaby]

There is nothing between a centimetre and a meter in the metric system.

My schooling was initially in feet, inches etc but in high school metric was brought in. I have never heard of the RAD (I'm not saying it isn't used, just can't remember it) but I do remember the Decimetre (10 centimetres).

I'm a golfer, I measure the tee shots and approach shots in metres but I talk about my putts in feet. I know my height in feet, inches only. I know my weight in kg's only. I only know distances and speed in kilometres. I measure my beer glasses in ounces.

Speaking of beer glasses, I really need a few after confusing myself yet again.