Allow me a little rant about the so-called scientific metric system:

[hedgehog]

I came across this statement.

"Metric units are used everywhere in the world EXCEPT the USA. It is based on
scientific measurements, not the length of a king’s foot or the weight of a chicken."


Oh yeah?

"the meter is the length of the path traveled by light in vacuum during a time interval of 1/299,792,458 of a second. "

http://www.nist.gov/mel/ped/museum-timeline.cfm

"The official kilogram – a cylinder cast 118 years ago from platinum and iridium and known as the International Prototype Kilogram or “Le Gran K” – has been losing mass, about 50 micrograms at last check."

http://www.gatech.edu/newsroom/release.html?id=1513

Now I don't know about you, but I have a much better grasp of how long a person's foot is than I do of the distance light travels in a vacuum in 1/299,792,458 of a second.


Metric units sound scientific, but in fact the metric system replaced an arbitrary set of units developed by consensus over the centuries to meet the needs of engineers, builders and scientists with another set of arbitrary units that were all divisible by 10.

If you go to a tool store and compare SAE and metric socket sets, you'll see that in the English set, the smaller sockets are very close in size,

3/8", 7/16", 1/2", 9/16", 5/8", 11/16", 3/4", 13/16", 7/8", 15/16" & 1

but that as the sockets get bigger, the difference in size gets larger. This reflects the physics of the forces involved with nuts and bolts.

By contrast, here's a similar set of Metric sockets:

11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 19, 21, 22 & 24 mm

The 11mm socket is not as small as the 3/8" socket, so the range is smaller. Also, if you encounter a 15mm bolt, you're out of luck.

[Captain Hilts]

1. Centigrade is more logical, Farenheit more accurate. Grams too small, quarter pound fine.

I'll take kilometers and litres just fine.

But I want to keep Farenheit and pounds.

[depakid]

6. Water boils 100 and freezes at zero- what's not to like about that

As to pounds- why not go all the way and bring back stones?

[Captain Hilts]

10. I agreed, it's logical, but not accurate enough. Not enough grades.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

15. In situations where you would need more accuracy, you take more decimal places out.

In situations where you wouldn't need such accuracy, then it doesn't really matter.

[Captain Hilts]

17. For weather reports, I prefer F over C. Kilometeres, litres, fine by me. nt

[SemiCharmedQuark]

21. That's because you are used to F. If you had grown up with C, it wouldn't bother you.

[Captain Hilts]

30. I've lived with both, thank you very much. nt

[SemiCharmedQuark]

32. Then you know that for everyday use, Celsius-even reported to a whole number- is more than

adequate.

[Captain Hilts]

34. You seem to think you know a lot about me. I studied meteorology and actually

prefer the accuracy of Farenheit.

It's that simple.

You don't. That's fine.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

35. Please explain what you mean by "accuracy" in F and please explain how this could not be achieved by

simply taking out more decimal places in C?

If you have a personal preference for one over the other, then I understand that. For you to say that one system is more "accurate" than the other is where I lose you.

[Zodiak]

47. As a meteorologist, you should understand the difference between precision and accuracy

Hint: Accuracy has nothing to do with the unit of measurement.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

99. Neither applies really.

And I question anybody who claims to havve seriously studied a science without recognizing the superiority of the metric system.

[question everything]

64. Temp is really what it means to you, based on your experience

You can get used to 10C as being cold or 50F.

It is all relative. We chuckle when friends in LA told us how cold it has been... 62F, while we have been waking up to..27F.

And you know it is very hot at 32C or at 90F.

[elocs]

46. I grew up speaking English. If I had grown up speaking Italian it wouldn't bother me.

So much is relative.

[MineralMan]

24. For me, once it gets to -40 degrees, it doesn't matter, anyhow.

:shrug:

[Statistical]

31. Why not?

98
98.1
98.10
98.101
98.1013
98.10138
98.101386

[enlightenment]

37. All the way back?

Gah. Thanks, depakid - now I feel ancient!

(use stones all the time . . .)

;)

[MineralMan]

40. And pennyweights and drachms, and other such obsolete

measures.

[KatyMan]

42. go to England...

Nobody there can tell you how much they weigh in pounds or in kilos, only stone. Well, that's crass generalization, but it's fairly common.

[depakid]

52. I know

to a lesser extent, you hear it in Australia, too.

[supernova]

54. The British still use stones

to convey personal weight, as in I weigh 9 stone. edit: If you buy a bathroom scale, it's in stones. :-)

[question everything]

61. But, at least, they've converted to have 100 pennies in a pound

I remember when we visited in the 60s, trying to convert pennies to shillings and how many shillings were in 1 guinea?

[Tesha]

56. I can easily think of fourteen reasons why we shouldn't! (NT)

[petronius]

96. If you forgive a small gasp of pedantry, ice melts at 0C, water doesn't

necessarily freeze at 0C...

[DireStrike]

16. I don't see what's stopping weather services from saying "35.7 degrees celsius".

Or using smaller divisions in any manner.

[Dr. Strange]

23. Kelvins are even more logical.

Zero means just that--zero.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

26. Yeah, but Kelvin and Celsius use the same scale. 1 Kelvin is equal to 1 deg, Cel

So for practical purposes, it's easier to use the smaller numbers rather than degree Celsius +273.15

[snagglepuss]

44. Count me in. I sooooo agree with your post. Fahrenheit is so much better for weather

reporting, much more subtle. Recently however I've seen some weather reports include decimal points with centigrade reading which is more helpful.

[damntexdem]

51. Metric is more logical, and that's why it's used in science.

But it IS hard to overcome an attachment to units we have grown up with.

When I travel in Mexico, I can't help translating KMs into miles and Celsius into Farenheit -- otherwise, I just don't have the same sense of things.

Lucky for the rest of the world, they grow up with the metric system so don't have such problems -- except when they come to the US or otherwise interact with nutty gringos.

[slackmaster]

2. The Metric System yields more precise measurements for machine tools and parts

Because the smallest metric unit used for common measurements, .01 mm is less than .001 inch.

Also, if you encounter a 15mm bolt, you're out of luck.

Bolts with 15 mm heads are used for special purposes, such as the attachment of automotive seat belts to their mounts. I assure you that 15 mm wrenches and sockets of all kinds are available.

You raise some good points. Another thing that drives me bonkers about small metric fasteners is the thread pitches. They come in 1.25, 1, .9, .8, and .7 threads per mm. Choosing an appropriate tap or die can be daunting.

[Gman2]

11. That aint free. Cheaper to geometrically dimension.

[sailor65]

19. Except that .001

is not the smallest unit we use in designing these tools, and hasn't been for a very long time.

[DontTreadOnMe]

3. Pop Quiz!

OK, simple math. (HINT - please note the amounts are not the same in each question and each question will have a unique answer)

Question 1: Add the following 5 amounts: 10.4mm + 12.6mm + 5.5mm + 9.8mm

Question 2" Add the following 5 amounts: 10 3/8" + 12 7/16" + 5 1/2" + 9 15/16"

Which one was easier?

Shall we try division next?

[Gman2]

22. Thats 10.375, 12.4375, 5.5, 9375, Any machinist has these memorized.

[nebenaube]

4. Was there some point to this post? n/t

[DontTreadOnMe]

5. The original poster is at Home Depot right now...

trying to find a metric hex wrench.

[yorgatron]

7. we should use Whitworth for threads.

:evilgrin:

[MineralMan]

18. Hey, I still have a full set of Whitworth combination wrenches and

sockets, including deep sockets. Haven't used them in a long time, but who knows...I may buy a classic British car or motorcycle some day. It's easier to keep them than replace them if I ever need them.

Note: I do keep them in their own toolbox. Too damn confusing to have them around to confuse with my fractional and metric tools.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

9. Metric System is the tool of the devil!

OPs car gets 40 rods to the hog's head and that's the way she likes it!

[Posteritatis]

53. I just saw a bog-standard American Who Hates The Metric System rant (nt)

[MineralMan]

8. The reason is simply mathematical.

All math operations are easier in a decimal system than in a fractional system.

As for the socket sizes, you can easily buy a 15mm, 18mm, 20mm, or other socket. However, those hex head sizes are not commonly used, so the set you mention is perfectly adequate, although 8,9,and 10 mm sockets are generally included, and are needed. There are better assortments than the one you name, and they're readily available.

These days, most American cars use a mix of metric and fractional fasteners. Now, that's annoying, I'll grant you, especially for the amateur mechanic, who doesn't have the experience to know where the two systems are typically used on the same car.

You are correct that there is no simple correspondence of ease in recognizing typical sizes in either system. That's unimportant. As you use either system, you learn the approximations quickly.

It's the math.

[sailor65]

12. Metric has never been truly superior in terms of accuracy

its advantage is in making the mathematics simpler.

[Ichingcarpenter]

43. LOL.....

Most Americans can't figure out that 2/8 equals a quarter of an inch.

I worked in the trades.... they couldn't read a ruler.

[conscious evolution]

68. I have seen the same thing

Way too many kids can't figure out rulers these days.Pretty scary,imo.

[immoderate]

81. When I taught middle school math...

I would give the students a standard index card and a ruler. I would say, "You have all received a three by five card and a ruler. Use the ruler to measure the card.

Most of them couldn't do it. :banghead:

--imm

[DireStrike]

13. You want to complain to metric socket manufacturers.

The system is still better based solely on its divibility by ten. Being used by 90% of the world (or whatever) doesn't hurt its cause either.

[krispos42]

14. The meter was originally defined as 1/10,000,000th the distance...

...between the equator and the North Pole. This yielded a measurement about a big as a yard, but was consistant (unlike the multitude of definitions of 'yard' in existance). They only use that equation you mention in laboratories to calibrate their equipment.

A metric ton became a cubic meter of cold water. A gram became 1/1,000,000th of a cubic meter of cold water.


:shrug:


It's internally consistant, much more so than English. I've done thermodynamic and physics equasions in both, and metric is easier.

[TZ]

20. Umm liters are much more efficient than Gallons, Grams better than Pounds

There is a real good reason why SCIENTIFIC LABS are all metric. Give me my measurements in 100's anyday.

[Dr. Strange]

27. You silly Earthlings with your base-10 enumeration system.

Ha! I can't believe that's the second time today I've said that!

[MineralMan]

38. Exactly. Cartoon characters use Base 8.

[MineralMan]

28. Quick! How many inches in a mile?

OTOH, how many centimeters in a kilometer?

Ones easy. The other's a PITA.

[Romulox]

73. Quick! Who cares?

:shrug:

[Captain Hilts]

36. In science, yes. In Commerce, no. People and merchants prefer the simplicity of

"a quarter pound" of this or that rather than in hundreds of grams.

In shops in Canada most merchants use references to portions of pounds.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

39. You wouldn't use "hundreds of grams" though. You would use Kilograms.

[Retrograde]

115. Italians use "etto" for 100 g

which works well for them. It's about 3.5 ounces, or a bit under a quarter pound. I didn't see the local MacDonald's selling etto-burgers, but I didn't look really hard. It's a useful size: an etto of cold cuts makes a couple day's worth of sandwiches, 3 etti of pasta will serve 2 people for dinner, fwiw. It's just another way of dividing up the world.

[nadinbrzezinski]

89. And in Mexico you order your things as a quarer of a kilo,

half a kilo... you get the picture. Canada (especially amongst the elderly) has not finished doing that conversion.

You can also order as hundred grams for example. I have done it many a times when I go down to visit parents and go buy things at the deli for them.

[Posteritatis]

95. This Canadian sees kilograms, liters, or 100g/mL increments in most places (nt)

[Thothmes]

108. Not all scientific labs are metric.

NASA accidently slammed a probe into Mars because some of the calculations were in English units vs metric units.

[Ichingcarpenter]

25. See.... Metrics suck USA got 186,000mps and the rest of world

is 299,792,458 metres per second......... What's up with that?
that's not even an easy number
to remember.

[Bill McBlueState]

49. I'm curious

what situation you're in where the approximation c=3x10⁸ m/s doesn't meet your needs.

[Ichingcarpenter]

50. It was a caustic sarcastic comment

I post in the science forum a lot.

[Tesha]

58. The thing that killed the sarcastic humor is that it's 186,282 M/S ;-)

Not so round in Imperial units either.

Tesha

[JBoris]

29. Didn't Grandpa Simpson already do this rant?

[SemiCharmedQuark]

33. He did another good one on why we shouldn't recognize Missour-ah

[Fumesucker]

41. You'd be happier in Puerto Rico..

Speed limits are in MPH, gas is sold in liters..

Go figure..

[walldude]

98. LOL that's cause 3 bucks a liter sounds better than 12 bucks a gallon...

[ddeclue]

45. As an actual degreed aerospace engineer I hereby decree this a MORAN thread.

It is far easier to work in the metric system as an engineer than it is to work in the idiotic American system of units.

:crazy:

[taterguy]

55. There's no A in moron

:eyes:

[ddeclue]

62. Exactly.. I was making fun...

:crazy:

[taterguy]

65. There's no fun in GD

:eyes:

[conscious evolution]

69. LOL!

and morons don't get A's

[hedgehog]

93. In the idiotic American system, people specify lbm and lbf

if the context is unclear. What does it mean when someone tells you something weighs 1 kg? Are you sure?

[ddeclue]

97. Technically the unit of mass in the American system is the "slug"..

and 1 lb.force=32.2slug ft/sec^2

:rofl:

[hedgehog]

100. True that, and give me five minutes to review and i"ll be slinging

slugs and lbm and lbf with the best of them. Still doesn't explain why people using the "scientific" metric system weigh things in kilograms instead of newtons.

[ddeclue]

103. You don't "weigh" things.. you measure their mass.

Mass is measured in kilograms.

If you want to measure force you measure Newtons.

A kg of crackers is still a kg of crackers in orbit or on the Moon. If Newtons were used and the gravitional force on those crackers was used then it would change from place to place. That's why you measure the crackers' mass not the gravitational force on it.

Doug D.

[hedgehog]

122. But wouldn't the crackers settle in the box by the time you

got them to the Moon?

[ddeclue]

126. DUZY ALERT!

:rofl:

Actually they would start "unsettling" once powered flight ended.

:D

[hedgehog]

106. I was in the last generation of engineers trained to use the slide rule.

If I may make a comparison:

If you ever used a slide rule, you had a physical representation of logarithms in your hand and I think you understood logarithms better than someone for whom a log was just another button on a calculator.

(BTW - I am NOT advocating a return to the slide rule, just noting what we lost!)


With the metric system it's easier to run some calculations, provided you're using nice round numbers. On the other hand, using the English system you were forced to understand what you were doing and were very aware of the difference between mass and weight.

We had one teacher who used to drive us nuts by setting up apparently elaborate questions on exams. We'd all be sitting there whipping the slide rules back and forth trying to come up with an answer. Then, on the exam review, he'd show us that if we understood the concept involved, we could plot out data given in the question and come up with the answer simply and quickly. The moral of that story being, anyone can crunch numbers, but you have to understand what you're doing to come up with the right answer.

[ddeclue]

120. As an engineer who studied in the 80's and 90's I disagree.

The American standard system obscures the differences between units and actually makes things harder to understand for most people. As someone who grew up in Europe as a military dependent and as a Georgia Tech trained engineer, I'm entirely capable of working in either system but the SI system is clearly easier to understand and apply to problems.

The slide rule issue is interesting too. The big problem is that people don't understand significant digits, slide rules didn't really give you a choice they typically only had 2 or 3 digits.

The slide rule however limits what you can do as an engineer - you are limited to closed form analytical solutions, numerical solutions simply take too long. Digital computers allow for a whole new realm of finite element and finite difference solutions to previously intractable problems.

[eridani]

131. I showed my nephew the slide rule I used in high school

He asked me if I had to chip it out of flint!

[Kaleva]

48. Good rant about the Nazi measurement system

:)

[hunter]

57. I think we should measure distances in nanoseconds.

It takes light about one nanosecond to travel the length of a shoe. Who's shoe, I don't know, but we could find somebody.

[Canuckistanian]

84. I measure all speeds in furlongs per fortnight

A pox on these "miles per hour"

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

59. Did you think any of this through before you posted it?

"Now I don't know about you, but I have a much better grasp of how long a person's foot is than I do of the distance light travels in a vacuum in 1/299,792,458 of a second."

And I don't think about lightspeed-distance when I think about meters. I just think about meters. You don't think about actual human feet either, you use calibrated tools like rulers. Just like with meters.

"Metric units sound scientific, but in fact the metric system replaced an arbitrary set of units developed by consensus over the centuries to meet the needs of engineers, builders and scientists with another set of arbitrary units that were all divisible by 10."

Consensus? Who's consensus was it to come up with English units? It's a shame a consensus would be so fucking stupid.

Is it arbitrary? Of course. All systems of measurement would be. The metric system's still better.

"3/8", 7/16", 1/2", 9/16", 5/8", 11/16", 3/4", 13/16", 7/8", 15/16" & 1

but that as the sockets get bigger, the difference in size gets larger. This reflects the physics of the forces involved with nuts and bolts.

By contrast, here's a similar set of Metric sockets:

11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 19, 21, 22 & 24 mm

The 11mm socket is not as small as the 3/8" socket, so the range is smaller. Also, if you encounter a 15mm bolt, you're out of luck."

That's got nothing to do with the measurement systems whatsoever.

[question everything]

60. How many inches in a foot? in a yard?

How many feet in a mile? How many yards in a mile?

With the metric system you have:

10 millimeters in a centimeter

100 centimeter in a meter

1000 meter in a kilometer

you have

1000 milligrams in a gram

1000 grams in a kilogram

You see how much easier it is?

[bvar22]

63. America has adopted the "Fruit" unit of measure.

When an American goes to the doctor and is told,
"You have a 9cm tumor", the doctor is met with a blank stare.

Doctors were forced to switch to the "Fruit Unit of Measure" so Americans can understand.
"You have a tumor the size of a grapefruit."

---credit to Wanda Sykes, also apologies.
She tells it so much better.

[depakid]

82. LOL- let's not forget bushels & pecks

[Lilith Velkor]

105. It's not a bad idea for bra sizing

(I wear a 42 Orange.)

[bvar22]

110. LOL.

Lets meet after for some fruit cocktail.

[Retrograde]

66. All measurement systems are arbitrary

In Germany, many locations had their own notion of what a "fuss" was, usually based on someone's actual foot. I find the English system easy to use because (1) I'm used to it and (2) I can use rules of thumb for quick estimates: an inch is approximately the length of the first joint on my thumb, a cup is 2 good handfuls, a yard is roughly the distance of my outstretched arm from the hand to the nose. English units are also easier to divide into 3rds and 4ths.

However, when it comes to adding, multiplying, dividing and subtracting I prefer metric units for their regularity.

[BadgerKid]

67. Where's metric time?

http://zapatopi.net/metrictime/

[conscious evolution]

70. Its ten oclock

[Romulox]

72. Excellent point. The "Metric is more logical!" people fall silent... nt

[berni_mccoy]

75. No thanks. The hours would drag on far too long. LOL

Just kidding.

[Retrograde]

80. The French tried, during the Revolution

I've seen clocks built in the late 1700s that tried to show both standard 12-hour and the new metric time. Complicated.

There's no reason, really, why the day can't be divided into ten more or less equal sections instead of 12 - or 5 or 20 or any other number: we use the former because we've always done it. If we ever do go to metric time, though, expect employers to pay the same wage for the longer hour!

[ddeclue]

90. Time in the metric system is measured in SECONDS,, YOU FAIL..

:P

MKS = meter kilogram second.

[bbernardini]

71. Please enjoy this great punk song about the metric system:

By Atom and His Package, called "(Lord, It's Hard to be Happy When You're Not) Using the Metric System".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCP8kiL3jhA&fmt=18

[Romulox]

74. The meter is really poorly scaled to human environments.

Most people are 1.X meters tall, for example.

[Posteritatis]

76. Most people are 5.x feet tall. Your point? (nt)

[Romulox]

78. "The meter is really poorly scaled to human environments."

:hi:

[Posteritatis]

79. Your example was broken. You're just because-I-said-soing. (nt)

[Romulox]

83. You asked what my point was (which should have been self-evident)

not for another example

At any rate, my point makes perfect sense. Since most people are less than 2 meters tall, most of the objects and structures in their environments are scaled to match this size. Which means that the meter isn't very useful in describing a good deal of the measurements people use on a daily basis.

Which is why you're more likely to hear a Canadian or a Brit tell you his height in feet and inches as in fractional meters.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

101. You're most likely to hear a Brition tell you their weight in stone

Do you think that means the stone is the most convenient measurement? People use measurements that they grow up with and are familiar with.

[Romulox]

130. It does tend to suggest that *Brits* find stones more useful than kilos.

"People use measurements that they grow up with and are familiar with."

Every drug dealer uses grams. People use measurements that are useful to them.

[PSzymeczek]

92. I'm not.

:)

[immoderate]

77. Your information is incomplete.

The original meter was based on one ten millionth of the distance from the equator to the north pole. That makes the circumference of the earth exactly forty thousand kilometers. Since there are variations in the earth's surface, as well as iridium bars, it is now referenced to a wavelength of light. But it's based on a practical standard that makes navigation easier.

The units for mass and volume are based on properties of water and the meter at certain temperatures and pressure. Since all the units are related, calculations that involve length, volume, temperature, pressure, and mass are often simplified. Many other units are based on this system extending that simplicity.

As to your sockets. There are 11 of each. The standards are in increments of 1/16 inch. That's a lot larger than 1 mm. So the smaller metric sockets are in increments of 1mm, and the larger ones are 2mm, still not spanning the same range. If you really need a 15mm socket, buy one, or cheat w/16mm. As they get larger, exact sizes are less necessary.

It's not arbitrary.

--imm

[Call Me Wesley]

85. I like the metric system.

But I'm one of these Yurpeans who grew up with it. I admit, I need an online converter to know how many inches are in a gallon ...

[Canuckistanian]

86. What point are you trying to make about the kg standard?

Are you saying that simply because it's measured in kilograms that it's unstable and therefore unusable?

What standard is used for the pound?

[Donald Ian Rankin]

87. That anyone prefers the Imperial system bewilders me.

Metric makes so much more sense, and is so much easier to use. Doing any form of advanced science in Imperial would be insane.

[conscious evolution]

91. And expensive

Just ask the rocket scientists on that mars probe a few years ago.
You know we are a fucked up nation when fucking rocket scientists cannot figure out the difference.

[hedgehog]

112. It wasn't that one or the other system was used that caused the problem ,

it's that both systems were used.

[Posteritatis]

94. The only real reason people object is that it's not American

All the objections you'll see in this thread with any other justification are objecting to arbitrary uses of the metric system and not the metric system itself. Go broader than DU and you'll see lots of "we don't use metric and we're the mightiest nation on Earth, therefore metric would weaken us!" type 'thinking.'

Just more exceptionalism.

[nadinbrzezinski]

88. Forgive me to tell you this

but yes, the US still stubbornly refuses to join the rest of the world...

And as a person who grew up using the metric system... this rant is more the we are special, and why should we be like the rest?

On the bright side... this thinking will go away when the US becomes a province of the next empire.

Oh and yes, we have seen silly mistakes that have cost millions when people do the conversion wrong (see Mars projects)... and in health care it can lead to some serious mistakes, as the METRIC system is the system of science and medicine.

[hedgehog]

102. I fully expect to see a slow conversion to metric in industry

if only because so many companies are multinational now. The rant isn't that we're special, the rant is at the assertion that one arbitrary set of units is somehow more "scientific" than another set because it looks tidier. I find that since the KGS system attempts to measure everything with a single set of units, it sometimes lacks the finesse special units can bring to special purposes. For example, an acre was roughly the amount of land a ox could plow in a day. I can measure off a yard of cloth more or less simply by stretching out my arm. Farmers used one unit, seamstresses used the other. We need more precision these days, but no given set of units is more precise than another.

As I noted above, if the KGS system was used properly, people would give their weight in newtons, not kilograms. Instead, everyone converts lbs to kilograms and understands that we're all referring to a kilogram as the weight of a kilogram mass of water.


I suspect that the original definition of a meter was contrived to approximate a yard. Sure, the meter was originally defined as one ten-millionth of the distance from the Equator to the North Pole through Paris (is the line through Paris more scientific than the line through Dubuque, Iowa?), but what people really wanted to do was measure fabric for a suit of clothes.

[nadinbrzezinski]

116. Well the best way to do this converstion is one day you wake up

and all is in metric...

We have tried the slow... don't work.

And in the sciences yes, it is more exact and you need that in the sciences.

By the way, KJoules are used in Europe for caloric info, and in places like Mexico both are used.

[hedgehog]

117. Anyone who doesn't think the English system is exact needs

to stand at the fish counter some time and watch a customer demand a salmon filet that is exactly 1 pound, not 0.97 pound and not 1.04 pounds.

[nadinbrzezinski]

119. I can do that with Kilos too

and your point? For the sciences it is NOT EXACT ENOUGH... PERIOD.

Why the world of science moved to metric over three generations ago. The last research in the US to be done in English was the Salk Vaccine. After that the conversion happened and happened FAST...

[hedgehog]

121. English units were apparently exact enough to put men on the Moon

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2007/08jan_metricMoon.htm

Ease of use in a given situation doesn't make metric any more exact or any more scientific, it just makes it easier to use.

[nadinbrzezinski]

125. And they crashed a probe to Mars

Look it is time the US joins the rest of the world, PERIOD.

You may chose to hang up to whatever you want, but IT IS TIME THE US JOINS THE REST OF THE WORLD... PERIOD.

And yes that is MY RANT... as a student of science and history I know it is FAR BETTER than the British system or for that matter, the Spanish System of Measure, or the many other systems of measures that it has replaced.

[hedgehog]

128. I meet your crashed Mars probe and raise you

[Taitertots]

104. Worst metric system critique ever

The size of a persons foot varies greatly. The speed of light in a vacuum doesn't.

I'd like to hear you come up with a better system to represent mass than that.

Base 10 is absolutely superior to others because of our base ten number system.

I have three 15mm sockets.

"but that as the sockets get bigger, the difference in size gets larger. This reflects the physics of the forces involved with nuts and bolts. This sentence is incorrect. The difference between 15/16 and 1" is the same as the difference between 3/8 and 7/16, it is 1/16 inch.

[hedgehog]

107. I've tried measuring how much of something I need by counting off

the seconds it took a beam of light to cross it, but dang, I'm just not that fast. On the other hand, if I need to figure the area of that bare spot on the lawn so I can buy some grass seed, it's fairly easy to heel and toe it and throw in a fudge factor.


Since I clearly labeled the OP a rant, I claim the right to speak in broad terms. My point about the sockets is that while the English system looks odd to someone who is not a machinist or mechanic, the odd assortment of numbers at the low end (3/16, 3/8, 3/4 ) makes sense.

[Taitertots]

111. I tried to build parts here that people on the other side of the world used

and using my feet didn't work. I don't know about you, but I would prefer world wide consistency over backyard simplicity. You could just figure out how many centimeters long your foot is.


Makes sense after a while but offers no real benefits.

[hedgehog]

113. I recognize that life would be easier if everyone used the same units.

In fact, this rant was inspired because I was trying to match up metric HEB beams to English Wide flange beams and came across the statement referring to chickens. The fact that everyone else uses metric means that the US industry will probably slowly shift to metric. On the other hand, I was once told that in France, fabric still comes in widths of 45" and 60" because no one has adjusted the width of the looms in 300 years to make them 20cm and 25 cm wide. (I have no idea if this is true.)

My argument is that the metric system is not intrinsically more scientific than the English system and that the English system is handier for some applications.

Is the Qwerty key board less rational than the Dvork keyboard? One was designed to slow typists down, the other to maximize speed. The English system of units was developed over a millenia or two with multiple sets of units to meet multiple situations. The Metric system was designed by a small committee to use a small number of units to fit every application. Sometimes it's an awkward fit.

[anAustralianobserver]

109. The English/Imperial system is hazardous in many contexts

For example, in English units my penis is much smaller and that makes me angry.

[hedgehog]

114. That's only because you need to stand on your head and

spin counter clockwise while taking your measurements to counteract the Coriolis force.

[conscious evolution]

118. I heard that in Australia that

The Angle of the dangle
In direct proportion to the heat of the meat
Causes the size of the rise
And the mass of the ass
To remain constant

[hedgehog]

123. Ah! Engineer humor!

[conscious evolution]

129. Have you ever seen the T&A beer curve?

Unfortunately the urban dictionary does not have it listed.Bummer.

[unkachuck]

124. we should have been forced to convert....

....to the metric system years ago....it's just more practical, for example,

....let's say you want to calculate your static compression ratio and you need to find the combustion chamber volume....in the metric system there's a one to one relationship between cubic centimeters and millilitres....fill the chamber with a measured liquid in millilitres and you have the cc....

....there is no one to one relationship between cubic inches and fluid ounces using the old English system, requiring additional conversion....

[JVS]

127. IIRC the meter was originally defined as 1/1,000,000 the distance from the equator...

to the North Pole. Similarly one kg is 1000 cc of water at sea level. But since then there have been more precise definitions.

[JBoy]

132. Dennis Hopper said it best

It's very simple dialectics. One through nine, no maybes, no
supposes, no fractions -- you can't travel in space, you can't go out
into space, you know, without, like, you know, with fractions -- what
are you going to land on, one quarter, three-eighths -- what are you
going to do when you go from here to Venus or something -- that's
dialectic physics, OK?