If you've ever wondered why most of the world switched to Metric ...

[djos]

If you've ever wondered why most of the world switched to Metric, watch this video!



It's A/ Hilarious and /B equally educational - the research into this topic to make this video is quite impressive.

[langedweil]

[Just_a_fan]

The joy of a system that evolved over many hundreds of years.

My favourite thing about measurements is that the US is actually a metric country. Their standards are all defined by reference to SI Units with officials doing conversions to their traditional units. So the US inch is defined as a specific number of mm, it isn't a self defined measurement.

The UK is plain weird with measurements. We have a confusing mix of Imperial and metric. It's not unusual to hear people switching systems during a conversation. No wonder we don't know what we're doing half of the time.

[djos]

Here in Aus we switched in the 60's, however, there are still a few unofficial holdouts, Baby birth weights and Car wheel sizes spring to mind.

[nevill3]

At my place of work we work with decimal time......eg, 1.2 hours for this task or 1.3 hours for that task, it gets very confusing

[djos]

Yeah that can be confusing, at my org we measure our SLO’s in decimal time too.

[Just_a_fan]

We have official imperial units still with things like beer being legally sold in pints in pubs. That's not just 568ml dressed up as a pint, pint is the legal measurement. Road distances are measured in miles, and we talk about miles per gallon, but fuel is sold in litres not gallons. Clothes are sold in imperial sizes and people will usually know how tall and heavy they are in imperial units (feet and stone), but most industries are metric. Certainly construction is and farming is (although some older folk still refer to acres of land, the official documentation will be in square metres and hectares).

It would certainly be a lot easier if the UK just bit the bullet and went all in with metric. Except for the pint in the pub. That must always be in pints. Always. "I'm going for a quick 568ml with the lads, love, see you later" doesn't work, does it?

[tok-tokkie]

In South Africa we also switched in the 60s. I did school in Imperial but, fortunately, university in metric with the exception of Spotts' "Design of Machine Elements" which was Imperial.
tv & computer screens are now specified in inches here.

[Just_a_fan]

At my place of work we work with decimal time......eg, 1.2 hours for this task or 1.3 hours for that task, it gets very confusing

I remember having to time sheet things using decimal time. Everything ended up being recorded in 15 minute lumps because it's obviously dead easy to do then. Which made the time sheet process a bit pointless really.

[djos]

Except for the pint in the pub. That must always be in pints. Always. "I'm going for a quick 568ml with the lads, love, see you later" doesn't work, does it?

We have about four different beer glass sizes in Australia, none of them are legally controlled afaik. Varies from state to state too.

Personally, I have no issue with the idea of going down to the pub for a quick litre of beer.

[djos]

tv & computer screens are now specified in inches here.

Ours are advertised in both inches and centimetres. Inches is used generally but legally CM is the unit.

[Just_a_fan]

Personally, I have no issue with the idea of going down to the pub for a quick litre of beer.

Now you mention it like that...

[djos]

[Jolle]

[Just_a_fan]

OK, don't hate me here, but I've never watched Pulp Fiction. I really ought to as I'm told by every man and his dog that it's a classic.