The metric system sucks
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From: Sunny on 7 Feb 2010 02:23 "Michael Press" <rubrum(a)pacbell.net> wrote in message news:rubrum-7FBB70.20184506022010(a)news.albasani.net... > In article <Xns9D169470F2CA7goddardbenetscapenet(a)74.209.136.89>, > Bart Goddard <goddardbe(a)netscape.net> wrote: > >> jmfbahciv <jmfbahciv(a)aol> wrote in news:hkh7r45hcd(a)news3.newsguy.com: >> >> > Bob Myers wrote: >> >> I can't believe this is being seriously discussed in supposedly >> >> science-oriented newsgroups. >> > >> > <snip> >> > >> > You are going to have to realize that there exist people who >> > don't know there are more than one measurement system and >> > that they are not the same. >> >> That isn't what this discussion is about. Rather, it's about >> the weakness of certain arguments. Metric and English systems >> have various strengths and weaknesses. "It's antiquated" or >> "it's hard to calculate density of water in" or "we use it >> and you should copy us" or "if you spend a zillion dollars >> now retooling, you'll make it all back in only 1.5 centuries" >> simply carry no weight. >> >> If there's a compelling reason for the US to switch to >> metric, I have yet to hear it. Presumably, if a compelling >> reason existed, we would have been so compelled, eh? >> Afterall, how much have the British really benefitted >> from Decimation? It's slightly easier to calculate >> change (which the cash register did for them anyway) >> but they've lost a certain amount of coolness > > pound, shilling, pence, guinea, florin, half-crown, > farthing, sixpence, tuppence, halfpence, bob, quid. > > I was sorry to see them go, and do not even live there. > Michael Press I have, so far, lived with both systems, however, Australia in its infinite wisdom has now done away with the one and two cent coins, plus the one and two dollar notes (replaced by 1 and two dollar coins) :-)
From: Michael Press on 7 Feb 2010 05:10 In article <hke41p$n19$15(a)reader2.panix.com>, nospam(a)nospam.com (Paul Ciszek) wrote: > In article <7e4ca67f-208b-48e5-827f-b7380357befd(a)s12g2000yqj.googlegroups.com>, > Andrew Usher <k_over_hbarc(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > > > >that are officially metric. But so what of the numbers? The US clearly > >has a heck of a lot of power to impose its will on the rest of the > >world. > > But not as much as it thinks it has. > > Sometimes I think it would do the US a world of good if the rest of > the world would stage an "intervention" and stop loaning us money > or selling us oil until we admitted our addiction to both. Heh. All your base are belong to us. I am with Bart on this. I do all technical calculations in SI, and am perfectly at home with conventional USA units. A bushel is about the amount of agricultural produce you can expect to be able to hump around all day. As noted elsewhere in this thread anyone doing trade in the USA must accept metric when asked. This law was instituted in 1866. The USA based its units on metric before Great Britain did. 1 inch = 0.0254 meter 1 grain = 0.0648 gram. 1 pound avoirdupois = 7000 grain. There is one item of trade that went metric in the USA some time ago. Do you know what it is? || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || \ / \/ Distilled spirits. -- Michael Press
From: Michael Press on 7 Feb 2010 05:27 In article <cb00defa-3550-47a8-8d3a-82fb8f1ac9b0(a)j31g2000yqa.googlegroups.com>, "Ken S. Tucker" <dynamics(a)vianet.on.ca> wrote: > On Feb 4, 7:22 pm, Michael Press <rub...(a)pacbell.net> wrote: > > In article > > <69011e79-866e-43f3-b01f-bca8a8428...(a)19g2000yql.googlegroups.com>, > > "Ken S. Tucker" <dynam...(a)vianet.on.ca> wrote: > > > > > Yeah, 0F is cold and 100F is hot. > > > (there are 180 degrees between 32F and 212F, that's how > > > temperature was unitized, later Celius plagurized the degree, > > > and screwed it all up. > > > > 100 deg F was supposed to be human body temperature. > > > > Wait until the clock goes metric. > > > > The USA gallon aka Queen Anne gallon aka wine gallon > > started life as a cylinder 7 inch in diameter by 6 inch high. > > So why is it exactly 231 inch^3? > > > > A mile is a thousand double paces. > > > > Canoe voyagers measure portages in rods. > > When we were kids we'd measure time in smokes, like > how long does it take to walk from here to there, oh maybe > 2 or 3 smokes. Smokes being the number of cig's consumed > in the hike. Some of the kids smoked cigars that burned > longer, so we went to the standard cigarette. > Strange, we'd convey the length by how many smokes you'll > need to walk that distance. Kool. I should mention that a rod is a trifle longer than a canoe, offering a ready to hand measuring rod for the length of a portage. -- Michael Press
From: Ken S. Tucker on 7 Feb 2010 07:47 On Feb 7, 2:27 am, Michael Press <rub...(a)pacbell.net> wrote: > In article > <cb00defa-3550-47a8-8d3a-82fb8f1ac...(a)j31g2000yqa.googlegroups.com>, > "Ken S. Tucker" <dynam...(a)vianet.on.ca> wrote: > > > > > > > > > On Feb 4, 7:22 pm, Michael Press <rub...(a)pacbell.net> wrote: > > > In article > > > <69011e79-866e-43f3-b01f-bca8a8428...(a)19g2000yql.googlegroups.com>, > > > "Ken S. Tucker" <dynam...(a)vianet.on.ca> wrote: > > > > > Yeah, 0F is cold and 100F is hot. > > > > (there are 180 degrees between 32F and 212F, that's how > > > > temperature was unitized, later Celius plagurized the degree, > > > > and screwed it all up. > > > > 100 deg F was supposed to be human body temperature. > > > > Wait until the clock goes metric. > > > > The USA gallon aka Queen Anne gallon aka wine gallon > > > started life as a cylinder 7 inch in diameter by 6 inch high. > > > So why is it exactly 231 inch^3? > > > > A mile is a thousand double paces. > > > > Canoe voyagers measure portages in rods. > > > When we were kids we'd measure time in smokes, like > > how long does it take to walk from here to there, oh maybe > > 2 or 3 smokes. Smokes being the number of cig's consumed > > in the hike. Some of the kids smoked cigars that burned > > longer, so we went to the standard cigarette. > > Strange, we'd convey the length by how many smokes you'll > > need to walk that distance. > > Kool. > > I should mention that a rod is a trifle longer than a > canoe, offering a ready to hand measuring rod for the > length of a portage. Had a friend visit, who argued Imperial was retarded, so I dropped the subject, because he was a guest, only MeTric for him. About 15 minutes later I admired how tall he was and asked him how tall he was and without hesitation he says 6 foot 4. Wife and I look at each other, smiled, the dope didn't know he just lost the argument, he's a nice guy but works for the govmonks so he's a bit fucked up, mentally. What's 6 foot 4 in mm's? Ken
From: jmfbahciv on 7 Feb 2010 08:45
Bart Goddard wrote: > jmfbahciv <jmfbahciv(a)aol> wrote in news:hkjoki21g80(a)news1.newsguy.com: > >>> If there's a compelling reason for the US to switch to >>> metric, I have yet to hear it. >> If you have a business which wants to sell widgets to >> people in countries who use metric, you should manufacture >> your products using screws and bolts and things which >> are metric. >> > > Hypothetically. But note two things: The US doesn't sell > widgets, it buys widgets. So your "if-then" is vacuously > true. Second, other countries sell stuff to the US > all the time with parts that don't fit our official > measuring system. Hmmm..... There's still a gap > in your philosophy. > ARe you really claiming that the US doesn't export anything? /BAH |