a (metric) unit

Uriel   Tue Jan 31, 2006 12:28 am GMT
Actually, here in the US milk is virtually always sold by the pint, quart, and gallon. Soft drinks and water are almost always sold by the liter. Who knows why? Maybe because milk's been around longer than cokes or bottled water.
Guest   Tue Jan 31, 2006 2:05 am GMT
Metric is plainly an alienation of my American being.

You can use it in your country and I would use our system in mine.
Harian   Tue Jan 31, 2006 2:09 am GMT
>>Metric is plainly an alienation of my American being. <<

You got to be joking. Right?
Uriel   Tue Jan 31, 2006 2:12 am GMT
Probably joking, much as Adam was when he said it was far easier to divide by 12 than by 10.
Guest   Tue Jan 31, 2006 2:21 am GMT
>>Probably joking, much as Adam was when he said it was far easier to divide by 12 than by 10. <<

LOL what a idiot.
Jim   Tue Jan 31, 2006 4:50 am GMT
"Telling temperature in Imperial is more accurate than Metric." writes Adam ... proving, yet again, that he hasn't got a clue. Adam, go look "accurate" up in a dictionary.

"Metric is so much 'better' than Imperial that Metric uses multiples of ten, and ten can only be divided by 1, 2, and 5.

"Imperial likes using multiples of twelve - which can be divided by 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6." continues Adam.

Pray tell how many multiples of twelve do you find in the Imperial system.
greg   Tue Jan 31, 2006 5:48 am GMT
Adam : Twickenham février 2005 —> Angleterre-France : 17-18.
Guest   Tue Jan 31, 2006 6:39 am GMT
Wow, big call, little man. Why don't you two unite with your 35 points, kiss and make up.
Jim   Tue Jan 31, 2006 7:23 am GMT
Adam,

"50 being average temperature seems more normal than it being near the top of the scale." you write. Yes, absolutely ... to you but not to me.

"Also, 0 degrees Farenheit being minus 18 degrees Celsius proves again that Imperial is better than Metric ..." you continue "if the temperatures across Europe on a particular day are the same, that means that whilst it's only 0 degrees in Britain, it's minus 18 in Continental Europe."

I'm lost again. I don't understand you reasoning here ... is there any?

"Paying to convert to Metric is yet ANOTHER reason to NOT convery to Metric." This is a point. However I'd argue that the benifits outweigh the costs.

"Imperial measures are usually based on 12's or 16's because these can be divided into fractions." you write. This is not true.

The Imperial system uses a haphazard system of multiples. You'll find a few sixteens in capacity units (more in the American system) but there really aren't many twelves (& most of them are rather obscure). Then you have those wonderful elevens and sevens: real fun to work with.

"A third of a metre is an infinite number!" you write. Take another flip through the dictionary.
Benjamin   Tue Jan 31, 2006 7:35 am GMT
>> Nobody uses Fahrenheit in the UK do they? <<

Not generally, I don't think. Only really older people and maybe some people in isolated/rural areas. And, of course, we use it sometimes when it's very hot because '90 degrees' sounds like a more exciting story for the newspapers than '30 degrees', lol.
Guest   Tue Jan 31, 2006 10:13 am GMT
>>we use it sometimes when it's very hot because '90 degrees' sounds like a more exciting story for the newspapers<<

With our current global warming trend we wouldn't be using 90*C for oven temperatures but for weather casts very soon.....

Very scary though ;-(
Adam   Tue Jan 31, 2006 6:41 pm GMT
"Probably joking, much as Adam was when he said it was far easier to divide by 12 than by 10. "

It is.
Adam   Tue Jan 31, 2006 6:44 pm GMT
Why do you think the French (who think metric is so great) tell us that metric is better than imperial yet pack wine in packs of 12 and not 10?

Because how could they get a third of ten bottles of wine? A third of ten is 3.3333333333333333333333333333333, so they pack then in boxes of 12, a number which is easy to make a third of.
Adam   Tue Jan 31, 2006 6:48 pm GMT
"I'm lost again. I don't understand you reasoning here ... is there any? "

You will get lost if you have half a braincell, but it's not difficult to work out.

You, I think, said "0 degrees farenheit....that's -18 degrees Celsius."

But isn't that the reason why Farenheit is better? If Britain and France were the same temperature one day, that would mean that the British (who mostly use farenheit) it's only 0 degrees, whereas to the French (who mostly use celsius) it's -18 degrees, so we will have "warmer" weather than them.
Adam   Tue Jan 31, 2006 6:50 pm GMT
"Not generally, I don't think. Only really older people and maybe some people in isolated/rural areas. And, of course, we use it sometimes when it's very hot because '90 degrees' sounds like a more exciting story for the newspapers than '30 degrees', lol. "

Again, a reason why Farenheit is superior.

To us using Farenheit, it is scorching around 90 degrees, but to the dopey nonces who use celsius the temperature is scorching at around only 30-40 degrees celsius, so we have the illusion of havignw armer weather.