Convenience of the metric system

[Benz]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

Why will the metric system is patently idiotic?

b.

Because they based it on 10, which as has been pointed out is far less versatile than base 12. Because when they realized that the earth is oblate, so their scheme of dividing the distance from equator to pole failed, they didn't simply cut their losses and scrap the whole deal; they persisted in trying to find SOMETHING that would be a meter long. Metal rod failed. Couple other things failed. Finally settled on some arcane wavelength of something or other in a dark basement in a vaccuum--how many people can replicate that to check up on whether their meter stick is correct? Turns out it's easier to exhume the body of an English monarch to get the measurements of a yard down again! Because it was invented mostly to spite the English by some Frenchmen who wouldn't use anything invented by their enemies, and moreover, had the effrontery to want the Prime Meridian to pass through Paris!
By the way, since Lars keeps asking, a Nautical mile (the only sort of mile worth using), is 6,000 feet long. 2,000 yards. 1,000 fathoms. Line usually comes in 600 foot spools. 100 fathoms. One-tenth, in short, of a mile. Because tenths are also a valid fraction, along with thirds and halves and quarters. Some will say: "The equator isn't exactly divisible by exact 6,000-foot miles!" So what? When navigating we realize that the earth's surface is bumpy and we use a theoretical mean equator. Works pretty good. After all, the country that refuses to cave to the Metric Establishment won the race to the moon. There's some navigating for you.

Also, Noah may have been a terrible navigator--he used a raven as a navigational instrument, after all!--but when he ran aground, him and his family were the only ones left. So he was kind of still the best navigator of his epoch.

[avb3]

Originally Posted by Benz

............. After all, the country that refuses to cave to the Metric Establishment won the race to the moon. There's some navigating for you.

............

With development by a German rocket scientist who, guess what, used the metric system.

Imagine that.

BTW, scientists the world over use the metric system, including in the USA.

See here:
Metrication in the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Benz

The argument that the US, and all others still using Sensible measurements, should switch to Metric because the entire rest of the world is using it is specious. Why should we jump on the bandwagon of something that is patently idiotic because everyone else is? The whole world has been wrong before, after all.

Yes, but mostly this situation is a good diagnosis that the "one" is wrong.

Originally Posted by Benz

There is the well-documented incident of one man who was ridiculed for decades, by everyone else, while he built a boat. Until the flood came. Turned out the entire world at the time was wrong. Except for Noah.

Whoa! Did not see that coming. So you are appealing to mythological stories that have zero historical or scientific evidence to support your argumenent that the US should remain with Imperial measure ... that's a long way to go to buttress your argument.

[Sand crab]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Did not see that coming. So you are appealing to mythological stories that have zero historical or scientific evidence to support your argumenent that the US should remain with Imperial measure ... that's a long way to go to buttress your argument.

What you said.

[Normanby]

Originally Posted by Sand crab

What you said.

+2
What they said.


Matt
Compass 28

[henryk]

I came from metric to imperial system some over 20 years ago. It was hard at the beginning , but I managed only a part of it, in the construction field. I'm a tile layer by trade and use inches and feet every day, but when there is odd adding to do, than i use metric. it's easier to ad 65cm+ 65cm=130 versus 23 and 7/8+23 and 7/8. Than I found that it easier to subtract when calculating on the tape measure ! 23 and 7'8 + 23and78=48 less than a 1/4+23 and 7/8=72 less than 3/8. When it comes to car and boat mechanics i still didn't get over inches. When #13 is bit to small, I go for #14 or 15, but when 9/16 is to small or to big, I'm lost. I should be looking for 9/17, or 9/15

[avb3]

Originally Posted by henryk

I came from metric to imperial system some over 20 years ago. It was hard at the beginning , but I managed only a part of it, in the construction field. I'm a tile layer by trade and use inches and feet every day, but when there is odd adding to do, than i use metric. it's easier to ad 65cm+ 65cm=130 versus 23 and 7/8+23 and 7/8. Than I found that it easier to subtract when calculating on the tape measure ! 23 and 7'8 + 23and78=48 less than a 1/4+23 and 7/8=72 less than 3/8. When it comes to car and boat mechanics i still didn't get over inches. When #13 is bit to small, I go for #14 or 15, but when 9/16 is to small or to big, I'm lost. I should be looking for 9/17, or 9/15

Here is a song/video that tells your story for you

Corb Lund: Hard On Equipment (Tool For The Job) on Vimeo

[jongleur]

avb3:

Thanks for that. I laughed and laughed.

[StuM]

Originally Posted by Benz

By the way, since Lars keeps asking, a Nautical mile (the only sort of mile worth using), is 6,000 feet long. 2,000 yards. 1,000 fathoms. Line usually comes in 600 foot spools. 100 fathoms. One-tenth, in short, of a mile.

Hey, who stole the other 76 ft (or 80 if you are so inclined)

[K_V_B]

Originally Posted by Benz

Because they based it on 10, which as has been pointed out is far less versatile than base 12. Because when they realized that the earth is oblate, so their scheme of dividing the distance from equator to pole failed, they didn't simply cut their losses and scrap the whole deal; they persisted in trying to find SOMETHING that would be a meter long. Metal rod failed. Couple other things failed. Finally settled on some arcane wavelength of something or other in a dark basement in a vaccuum--how many people can replicate that to check up on whether their meter stick is correct?

You're being silly right?

Turns out it's easier to exhume the body of an English monarch to get the measurements of a yard down again!

Turns out that the official, legal defintion of "1 yard" is 0.9144 meters. The official definitions of all "US Customary Units" are in terms of SI units. The official defintion of "1 pound" is 0.45359237 kg.

Because it was invented mostly to spite the English by some Frenchmen who wouldn't use anything invented by their enemies, and moreover, had the effrontery to want the Prime Meridian to pass through Paris!

The idea of a "metric" system is quite older then the French revolution. In fact, Jefferson was in favor of a new system of measurements as well, based on multiples of 10. And tried to get in introduced in the US. He was one of the inspirators for the French scientists that invented the metric system. Anyway, did you know that France was also the first country to abolish the metric system?

By the way, since Lars keeps asking, a Nautical mile (the only sort of mile worth using), is 6,000 feet long. 2,000 yards. 1,000 fathoms. Line usually comes in 600 foot spools. 100 fathoms. One-tenth, in short, of a mile.

Actually a nautical mile originally was defined as 1/21600 of the circumference of the earth measured on a meridian... You still think that basing a unit on a dimension of our planet is such a silly idea?
The problem with that definition however is indeed that this leads to varying lengths depending on how you define the circumference of the earth. As a result for a long time a UK nautical mile was 6080 feet, and a US nautical mile was slightly longer, at 6080.20 feet.
However, the official internationally agreed upon definition of a nautical mile is now 1852 meters (exact), which comes to about 6,076.1155 feet.

Also, Noah may have been a terrible navigator--he used a raven as a navigational instrument, after all!--but when he ran aground, him and his family were the only ones left. So he was kind of still the best navigator of his epoch.

Of course, when you make up a story it's easy to make the hero the "best" in ways crucial to the plot...-

[K_V_B]

Originally Posted by Benz

The argument that the US, and all others still using Sensible measurements, should switch to Metric because the entire rest of the world is using it is specious.

Just like the argument that you should learn English because everybody else in the world does?
that's specious too?

[martinworswick]

Originally Posted by Benz

even if you could express so simple a concept as one-third (a very exact measurement, by the way) without forever chasing an infinitely repeating decimal (that little bar at the top of whichever the last decimal you cared to go to is, after all, a resounding admission of failure);

a third of what? sure you'll get a infinate number if you try to divide,lets say 10 but so will you if try to divide 10 inches by 3.

i'm a carpenter,english and know both systems,give me millimetres over fractions anyday-and ask american tradesman who regularly use add/divide/subtract fractions what they do and a lot will pull out the app on the smartphone.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Reiziger

In the UK they "almost" converted to Metric, the problem now for example Copper Tube, you can buy Metric and Imperial. Although close they don't fit together.

They also still drive on the wrong site of the road...

LegallyThe UK has converted, but you will always get legacy materials

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Nicholson58

I prefer 'furlongs per fortnight' A professor challenged us, "I don't care what units you use as long as they are correct". He spent a long time inventing conversions in order to correct the exam.

Use of metrics by us old farts, including us old-fart-engineers is a good way to crash land your spacecraft into Mars - a proven fact.

BTW, the reason for not converting as I see it - the US is packed with machinery & machine tools built to last or be rebuilt indefinitely, that have SAE scales and mechanisms made 10 or 100 turns to the inch. The conversion would obsolete billions in machine tools and cause the purchase of trillions in foreign made machines. I work in a machine shop making custom machinery. Its not happening. The inertia is too great. We buy (rarely) new machines that are programmable for multiple scales.

Simply because there is legacy equipment, in itself is no barrier to converting to metric. Many countries have done it.

My experience in engineering and science is the US is basically metric anyway.

[nimblemotors]

Fractions are just as simple as meters, it is just they don't express them conveniently, if they used 64 as the denominator, then 1/2 is '32', and 5/8 is '40' and wrenches and bolts can be specified with a single number, not a fraction, like how sheet metal gauges are specified, or "AN" fittings.

We could have a base 8 number system, if you just use fingers and not thumbs, and then kids could count to 24 with 8 fingers and 2 thumbs..