Imperial or Metric?

[InsaneApache]

the UK and US 'Imperial' systems are different.

The US has what we (UK) call a 'short' mile and a 'short' ton and so on.

Imperial is very easy once you understand it. An inch is supposed to come from the width of your thumb, and a yard comes from one stride. (well it IS very old)

However in the UK we have a mess. A mix of the two. I believe it was going to be introduced when we went decimal in 1971, but because of the balls up that created (and inflationary pressure) it was drip fed in.

Prosecuting someone in the UK for not adhering to a dictat from Brussells is a crime in itself. If someone wants to buy a £ of bananas they should be allowed to. Just as long that is what they get and are not short measured.

Still now that the EU is in the start of it's centralist death throes we might regain some common sense in the UK.

[GoreBag]

Ah, well, now you're talking, Gawain. Gas was sold by the Imperial (that being the UK version) gallon prior to 1978.

[_Martyr_]

As an engineer (well, still in Uni...) I seriously pitty my American counterparts who use Imperial.

The worst part of the Imperial system (actually, is it even part of the Imperial system???) is Fahrenheit. I hate Fahrenheit with a passion!

[drone]

Metric for science, imperial for everyday life. Some of the metric units are too big and/or too small to be useful.

What units get used for home-building in Europe? I heard a rumor that the construction business made up a unit since meters are too big for this.

[lars573]

Well there are decameters (a tenth of a meter). So that would be better for home building.

[Husar]

I think they/we use Millimeters.
4230mm = 4m 23cm(or 4m 2dm 3cm, or 4,23m, or 42,3dm or 423cm ), from what I read here I would be way too lazy to do that in Imperial which I don´t really know.

[Sigurd]

I live in a country using metrics but work in a business that uses imperial/US units of measurement. Experience has taught me that the Norwegian oilrigs use US units and the Scottish uses imperial. That is not saying this is always so. I am sure there are cases where it’s reverse.

I lied, the Norwegian oilrigs uses a hybrid of units. A drill pipe can be 5 ½" with 4 ½" inner diameter and a 7" Tool Joint and 3 ¾" tool joint ID. The connection threads can be 6" but the pipe length is 9, 35 meters (Range III) or 14 meters (Range II).

[InsaneApache]

ok...but just to complicate things, is that British Standard, Whitworth or Imperial?

[Duke Malcolm]

what are the differences between US and Imperial?

[InsaneApache]

Do try and keep up King Malcolm

[King Henry V]

I generally use the metric system because that' the system I learnt, but I would use imperial measurements if it weren't quite so complicated and if I had more oppurtinity to use them.

[InsaneApache]

Good God, our sovereign Lord can only add in the French system ???? ????

Gadzooks the king must be infested with demons and succubus.....

Nail him up. Nail some sense into him.

Nay an imposter...he should be let free to live on a island.

God Save the King.

[GoreBag]

what are the differences between US and Imperial?

Not sure if it bothers with other aspects of measurement, but the US gallon is 4/5 of the UK gallon. Or the other way around...

[Duke Malcolm]

This is all getting so confusing... why can't it just be simple measurements, the width of the thumb, the length of one foot, the length of a stride. There is always plenty of oppotunity to use the imperial system, by the by. Ask for fluids in pints; speak about feet, inches, and miles; use ounces, pounds and stones for weight.

A lesson in proper measurements:

16 ounces (oz) = 1 pound (lb)
14 pounds (lb) = 1 stone

12 inch (") = 1 foot (')
3 feet (') = 1 yard
1760 yards = 1 mile

1 inch = 1 width of your thumb
1 foot = 1 length of your foot
1 yard = 1 good stride

1 pint = perfect measurement of drink, especially beer, cider and whisky

[The Wizard]

Metric, well duh. Damn crazy island folk and their wayward subjects

[King Henry V]

Good God, our sovereign Lord can only add in the French system ???? ????

Gadzooks the king must be infested with demons and succubus.....

Nail him up. Nail some sense into him.

Nay an imposter...he should be let free to live on a island.

God Save the King.

Blame my parents for not sending me to the International school, instead of having to do the french system.

[GoreBag]

This is all getting so confusing... why can't it just be simple measurements, the width of the thumb, the length of one foot, the length of a stride. There is always plenty of oppotunity to use the imperial system, by the by. Ask for fluids in pints; speak about feet, inches, and miles; use ounces, pounds and stones for weight.

A lesson in proper measurements:

16 ounces (oz) = 1 pound (lb)
14 pounds (lb) = 1 stone

12 inch (") = 1 foot (')
3 feet (') = 1 yard
1760 yards = 1 mile

1 inch = 1 width of your thumb
1 foot = 1 length of your foot
1 yard = 1 good stride

1 pint = perfect measurement of drink, especially beer, cider and whisky

Haha. A stone has been 20 (or 22) pounds over here for quite some time. Face it, a decimal system is just sensical.

[Tachikaze]

The metric system isn't "what the Europeans use", it's what almost the entire world uses, except backward countries. For that reason alone, the US should convert. It's absurd to have more than one system.

The ideal system would be for us to count in base 12 and use a metric system in base 12. Base 12 allows divisions by 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 12. Base 10 only allows divisions by 1, 2, 5, and 10.

[Muska Burnt]

impeial since im used to it and what 14 pounds to a stone?

[Sigurd]

ok...but just to complicate things, is that British Standard, Whitworth or Imperial?

Please don't tell me I am going to send a Pipeline crashing into the seabottom because there are differences in the imperial units??

[Proletariat]

Please don't tell me I am going to send a Pipeline crashing into the seabottom because there are differences in the imperial units??

...oh boy.

[Duke Malcolm]

Haha. A stone has been 20 (or 22) pounds over here for quite some time. Face it, a decimal system is just sensical.

Where is "over here"?

[PyrrhusofEpirus]

Please don't tell me I am going to send a Pipeline crashing into the seabottom because there are differences in the imperial units??

In fact various problems arise from the diversity of units:
For example, a NASA mission to Mars(I don't remember what or when) drove in no place, because NASA used a french device which was measuring in metric and nobody convert its results to Imperial!

[drone]

In fact various problems arise from the diversity of units:
For example, a NASA mission to Mars(I don't remember what or when) drove in no place, because NASA used a french device which was measuring in metric and nobody convert its results to Imperial!

This happened not too long ago, they wrecked the vehicle due to a units discrepancy. The main problem with this is that NASA should be using metric, metric should be the standard for science. Just don't ask me how tall I am, or how much I weigh in metric units!

[Uesugi Kenshin]

Another NASA mission was dropped into Mar's atmosphere too fast because I believe Grumman used one type and NASA used the other. So they wasted a ton of money to create a nice light show above Mars...

EDIT: Messed up an acronym, if anyone noticed. *Inserts foot into mouth, chews vigorously*

[GoreBag]

Where is "over here"?

Canada. If you scoff and use the word "colony"...

I had the discussion not two days ago, actually.

[Duke Malcolm]

Ahem, I would never use the word colony. We let it stop being that in 1867. It has been a dominion ever since.

[hoom]

Metric makes so much more sense for most stuff.

There are a couple of things that seem to work better in imperial though, like person heights, lengths about a foot & boat dimensions.

Quite like the idea of a hex based version of decimal perhaps

[Papewaio]

Which do the people of the Org prefer?

Metric :
1000 grams to a kilogram
1000 millilitres to a litre
1000 millimetres to a metre, 1000 metres to a kilometre.

The US lost a quarter of a billion dollars from a poor imperial to metric conversion.

Metric
Grams for mass
Litres for volume
Metres for length.

milli = 1/1000th of the base unit, so 1 millimetre (1mm) = 1/1000th of a metre.
kilo = 1000 times the base unit (1x10^3), so 1 kilometre (1km) = 1000 metres.
or 1000 grams = 1 kg.

1 litre = 1000 cubic centimetres (1000cc) or 1 decimetre cubed (1/10 of a metre cubed), so there are 1000 litres or 1 kilolitre to a cubic metre.

micro = 1/1,000,000th of the base unit. (1x10^-6)
mega = 1,000,000 times the base unit (1x10^6) prefix M

[Procrustes]

After I replied to this thread I started thinking about all the conversion formulas I have to carry in my head. (I live in the US.) So....

Farenheit = 1.8*Celcius + 32
1 gallon = 3.8 liters
1 kilometer = 0.6 miles
1 cm = 0.4 inches
1 meter = 39 inches
1 foot = 30 cm
1 ounce = 28 grams
1 kilo = 2.2 pounds

And those are just the ones I have used enough to memorize. I'd be very happy if we ever convert - it will make life simpler.