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Post by Admin on Sept 3, 2023 14:08:46 GMT
Is the Metric System better than the Old English System?
I recently seen a television show where some British people were repainting the road signs with miles, over top of the kilometer ones.
Of course, the Metric system is more of a world wide standard now, and its units are based on things that make more Scientific sense, but is it always a better system to use?
I would argue no, it's not always better. Back when inches were based on a king's thumb or foot was based on his foot size, it can certainly be argued a standardized metric system is surely better, because back then the units changed when a new king took the throne.
Today, however, the Old English System is standardized and doesn't change. Even the British, however, have moved on from it. We across the pond, in the U.S., just haven't migrated yet, even though nearly everything is labeled in both systems to help us make the transition. We are either stubborn here or just too far from places, like Europe, (perhaps too isolated) to make the transition occur faster or occur fully.
Being a Science teacher for 15 years, I've used the metric system, and the S.I. system, a lot with students. However, I can think of 2 examples where the standardized Ole English system is better, in my personal opinion.
The first is the Pint. I find the Pint just the perfect size to order some beer in a bar, or pub as they say over there. The second is the Fahrenheit temperature system. When you change a degree on your thermostat in Europe, changing it one Celsius degree is not as a precise change in temperature as a degree change in Fahrenheit. Celsius degrees have more "space" or "distance" between them, making one temperature change in Fahrenheit a "smaller" or more "precise" way to customize the temperature of your home or room. The difference between Celsius and Fahrenheit making me prefer Fahrenheit for a thermostat is somewhat difficult for me to understand, I just know that using the Fahrenheit system is a more customizable way to delicate the temperature of your immediate environment. As a side note, the S.I. or Systems International system, actually uses Kelvin instead of Celsius - which is the only difference between it and metric that I can immediately think of.
What are your thoughts and opinions of what I've wrote here - ?
Michael Piziak
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Post by kingcong on Sept 12, 2023 20:38:03 GMT
Not quite... Fuel consumption for our combustion-engine cars is still measured in miles per gallon (and the range for new electric vehicles is quoted in miles), even though our fuel stations price and sell fuel by the litre. Vehicle warranties cover a maximum distance given in miles. Our road signs still show distances in miles. Many recipe books still use measures of pounds and ounces, though food at the supermarket is labelled in kilos and grammes. Draight beer in most pubs is still sold in pints, but bottles of beer and other drinks are measured in millilitres. I'm sure there are numerous other things I could add that don't spring immediately to mind.
Many older folks here still think in imperial measures, while kids think in metric. At 54, I'm stuck in the middle... I learned mostly (though not entirely) metric at school, but grew up in a time when imperial measures were more common - so I think in each for different things...
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Post by Admin on Sept 13, 2023 1:34:56 GMT
Not quite... Fuel consumption for our combustion-engine cars is still measured in miles per gallon (and the range for new electric vehicles is quoted in miles), even though our fuel stations price and sell fuel by the litre. Vehicle warranties cover a maximum distance given in miles. Our road signs still show distances in miles. Many recipe books still use measures of pounds and ounces, though food at the supermarket is labelled in kilos and grammes. Draight beer in most pubs is still sold in pints, but bottles of beer and other drinks are measured in millilitres. I'm sure there are numerous other things I could add that don't spring immediately to mind.
Many older folks here still think in imperial measures, while kids think in metric. At 54, I'm stuck in the middle... I learned mostly (though not entirely) metric at school, but grew up in a time when imperial measures were more common - so I think in each for different things...
I always heard it called the Old English System here. You educated me that it is also called the Imperial system.
Really, the only place people in the U.S. get a strict digest of the metric system is in Science class/labs. Most things, however, are labeled in both Metric and the Imperial units here, however. There are a few things sold in Metric units, like a 2 liter of soft drink is common here. We just seem to be too isolated from Europe and the other countries to make a transition to the metric system. Even though things are labeled for sale in both, people very very rarely mention the metric system when buying things - it's go to he store and get a Gallon of milk or a Pound of this or that - ounces and nearly every other imperial unit is still "talked about" most when people shop. Our road signs only have miles/hour too.
Regardless, the imperial units are standard no. Gone are the days when a foot was based on the size of the King's foot in England, and I think an inch was based on the size of the knuckle of his thumb to the end of his thumb. I really don't see a problem with using imperial system. Again, I think things just are more humanly tolerated in the imperial system. For example, a gallon of milk is just the right size to buy, just like a pint of beer is a good size.
Michael
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Post by kingcong on Sept 13, 2023 6:20:50 GMT
IMHO, the metric system of measurement (as we understand it today) is better for a modern society, as it's a lot easier to deal with mathematically... but of greater importance, in my view, is that only one system should be used. Mixing systems is confusing, misleading and time-consuming because of the need to convert between them. Moving a country wholesale from one system to another is always going to be difficult and meet with resistance, because those who were educated in - or grew up using - the old system will have to learn and adapt to the new one... but they will, in time.
As for a gallon or pint being just the right size for certain products... One UK pint is equivalent to approximately 0.57 litres, while a UK gallon is approximately 4.55 litres. Would it make that much difference to standardise a large glass of beer as one half litre (or make it 600ml if you prefer), or a large bottle of milk as 4 litres? Personally, I don't think so. We're only talking about relatively small differences in volume compared to the imperial standards.
Are you aware that U.K. imperial system and U.S. customary measurement system aren't identical? They're similar, but not the same - for example, one U.S. gallon is equivalent to approximately 0.83 UK gallons. Confusing, isn't it? If both countries - and every other country - standardised on one common system (metric would seem the obvious choice), imagine how much easier that would be, given the huge number of products sold internationally by volume or weight...
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Post by Admin on Sept 13, 2023 13:23:40 GMT
I wasn't aware that the U.K. Imperial system and U.S. customary measurement system differ in some interesting ways - I've done my new learning for the day! Ha!
But I do agree there are valid reasons why we should all use the Metric system. From the internet, below, is one compelling case!
"When NASA lost a spacecraft because it didn't use metric? How NASA Lost a Spacecraft From a Metric Math Mistake | SimScale In September of 1999, after almost 10 months of travel to Mars, the Mars Climate Orbiter burned and broke into pieces. On a day when NASA engineers were expecting to celebrate, the ground reality turned out to be completely different, all because someone failed to use the right units, i.e., the metric units!"
Michael
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