Thread: American measurements

The principal reason the americans don't have the metric system is that they see it as French! They don't like the French, even less so over the last 5 years.

I was brought up on imperial everything and I like the metric system a lot more, except for two things - description of someone's height and giving someone a good thrashing, which can only be done with a bit of 4 x 2.

Originally Posted by Pete J

The principal reason the americans don't have the metric system is that they see it as French! They don't like the French, even less so over the last 5 years.

I was brought up on imperial everything and I like the metric system a lot more, except for two things - description of someone's height and giving someone a good thrashing, which can only be done with a bit of 4 x 2.

You can still open a can of Whoop-Ass all over them*

*Now available in the new One Litre family-size

Originally Posted by Waldo

G'day,

While we're talking about Yanks and measurements.

If you have a Mac running Tiger you may notice in the widgets there is a widget called Unit Converter. Dopey Yank that did the spelling for litre got it wrong and spelt it "liter".

Now why does that surprise me? Asume because that's the way that you'd spell "liter" that way, that the rest of the world spells it?

Lazy mob. :mad:

waldo
in some states i think the yanks make provision for people to dispense small quantities of petrol to fill their cigarette liters, hence the seperate gauge for liters which measures, of course in milli-litres

Howdy All!

Interestin' thread!

Bazza says . . .

Or how much an American gallon is. __________________
Regards

To which I reply. . . check out the story of the "gimli glider" (http://archives.cbc.ca/IDC-1-69-240-...y/gimli_glider) if you want to find out how dangerous trying to drop the imperial measures and use 'metrickery' can be.


An' Bodgy says . . .
<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

The base of the metric system is the decimal system, which is cause we have 10 fingers to count on. If we had two fingers and a thumb it'd be hexadecimal. __________________

An' I come back with: . . . "chisenbop" (http://www.cs.iupui.edu/~aharris/basicComputing/bc5a.html). Seems like the only rational way to count to me.

You got it.

Originally Posted by Rabbit

Howdy All!

Interestin' thread!

Bazza says . . .
To which I reply. . . check out the story of the "gimli glider" (http://archives.cbc.ca/IDC-1-69-240-...y/gimli_glider) if you want to find out how dangerous trying to drop the imperial measures and use 'metrickery' can be.


An' Bodgy says . . .
<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->An' I come back with: . . . "chisenbop" (http://www.cs.iupui.edu/~aharris/basicComputing/bc5a.html). Seems like the only rational way to count to me.

Nicely done

I've always liked the Chisenbop system (not that I've ever heard it called that) - counting to 99 on 2 hands.

...well that's 30 minutes of my life I'll never get back. I didn't know the metric system was french. Being an imperialist yankee, I'll never switch now.

I must have skipped school the day the metric system was covered. I don't remember learning anything about it, and I'm younger than most of you.

Anyway, I know what 8/4 means and how long 1/4, 3/8, 11/16 is. I don't know what the hell a mm is. What it all comes down to it that I'm american, and if I don't want to, I don't have to change.

There, there, take a Bex and lay down, the world will pass on by

What is 0.01 of a 5/16?:eek: :confused:

(5/16)/100

Originally Posted by 9Fingers

...well that's 30 minutes of my life I'll never get back. I didn't know the metric system was french. Being an imperialist yankee, I'll never switch now.

I must have skipped school the day the metric system was covered. I don't remember learning anything about it, and I'm younger than most of you.

Anyway, I know what 8/4 means and how long 1/4, 3/8, 11/16 is. I don't know what the hell a mm is. What it all comes down to it that I'm american, and if I don't want to, I don't have to change.

Mate, Hadn't a been for the French, you mightn't have had much of a revolution might still be a Dominion. Go on, check out a mm. It's only a small thing . Me, I converted to metric in about '79 cos I had to for a course... then moved to England and converted back... now I'm back here I think stuff it! Imperial'll do. 3/16 - you can visualise it (z). How many mm is that? -Who cares..

Originally Posted by 9Fingers

What it all comes down to it that I'm american, and if I don't want to, I don't have to change.

9Fingers,

Back in the days when the sun never set on the British Empire, a Brit might have expressed similar sentiments. But look at them now - their empire consists mainly of the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, and Tristan da Cunha When China and India attain super-power status, the US may suffer a similar decline. Perhaps the fact that Ford is sacking half its work force may be an indication that the decline has already started; another might be that (correct me if I am wrong) America has not won a war in the last 50 years, apart from a glorious victory in Grenada

Rocker

Originally Posted by Bodgy

Jeez Alex, you did Latin too!

OK, 3 fingers and thumb = Octal?

Or just two stumps after a particularly nasty table saw accident. Binary?

Why not Grey code then?