Metrication

[GaryV]

I always get irritated when I think that US doesn't use metric. This should be fixed by metricating US.

Instead, the US should metricate Poiponen.  I think that this is needed.

Making him exactly one meter long by  cutting off useless extremities as needed.

Start from the top.

[Max Rockatansky]

I always get irritated when I think that US doesn't use metric. This should be fixed by metricating US.

Instead, the US should metricate Poiponen.  I think that this is needed.

Making him exactly one meter long by  cutting off useless extremities as needed.

Start from the top.

He'll just regenerate.  You have to make sure that you get every last living cell. 

[Poiponen13]

At least temperature should be in Celsius, if other measures are in US customary. That is because the Celsius scale very logically sets its 0 and 100 to freezing and boiling point of water, a very important substance without which the life cannot exist. Fahrenheit on the other hand has its 0 and 100 in arbitrary points close to freezer temperature and human body temperature.

[1995hoo]

Would someone please go lift the needle?

At least temperature should be in Celsius, if other measures are in US customary. That is because the Celsius scale very logically sets its 0 and 100 to freezing and boiling point of water, a very important substance without which the life cannot exist. Fahrenheit on the other hand has its 0 and 100 in arbitrary points close to freezer temperature and human body temperature.

Every country using the exactly same format is better than using different, and why,  why, whyyy the country which is different has to be just the US - the most populous country in Western Hemisphere, global superpower etc. Why such a superpower country has to use different units? Reasons why I think that they are better are:

- Metric units have ratios always powers of 10.
- Celsius has its zero in freezing point. ....

My best unit is Celsius. A climate where average high temperature of warmest month is about 30-33 C and average low temperature of coldest month is about -1-(-5) C. Temperatures over 30 C would be normally measured as early as mid-April and as late as mid-September, and temperatures over 25 C (so-called summer days)would be measured as early as late March and as late as early November. There would be at least some snow every year and maximums under 0 C and minimums under -10 C would be regular.

[Poiponen13]

Would someone please go lift the needle?

At least temperature should be in Celsius, if other measures are in US customary. That is because the Celsius scale very logically sets its 0 and 100 to freezing and boiling point of water, a very important substance without which the life cannot exist. Fahrenheit on the other hand has its 0 and 100 in arbitrary points close to freezer temperature and human body temperature.

Every country using the exactly same format is better than using different, and why,  why, whyyy the country which is different has to be just the US - the most populous country in Western Hemisphere, global superpower etc. Why such a superpower country has to use different units? Reasons why I think that they are better are:

- Metric units have ratios always powers of 10.
- Celsius has its zero in freezing point. ....

My best unit is Celsius. A climate where average high temperature of warmest month is about 30-33 C and average low temperature of coldest month is about -1-(-5) C. Temperatures over 30 C would be normally measured as early as mid-April and as late as mid-September, and temperatures over 25 C (so-called summer days)would be measured as early as late March and as late as early November. There would be at least some snow every year and maximums under 0 C and minimums under -10 C would be regular.

I insist that the US should Celsiusize.

[kalvado]

Would someone please go lift the needle?

At least temperature should be in Celsius, if other measures are in US customary. That is because the Celsius scale very logically sets its 0 and 100 to freezing and boiling point of water, a very important substance without which the life cannot exist. Fahrenheit on the other hand has its 0 and 100 in arbitrary points close to freezer temperature and human body temperature.

Every country using the exactly same format is better than using different, and why,  why, whyyy the country which is different has to be just the US - the most populous country in Western Hemisphere, global superpower etc. Why such a superpower country has to use different units? Reasons why I think that they are better are:

- Metric units have ratios always powers of 10.
- Celsius has its zero in freezing point. ....

My best unit is Celsius. A climate where average high temperature of warmest month is about 30-33 C and average low temperature of coldest month is about -1-(-5) C. Temperatures over 30 C would be normally measured as early as mid-April and as late as mid-September, and temperatures over 25 C (so-called summer days)would be measured as early as late March and as late as early November. There would be at least some snow every year and maximums under 0 C and minimums under -10 C would be regular.

I insist that the US should Celsiusize.

Poiponen13 should be Celsiusized by bringing his body temperature to either 0 or 100 ⁰C. I think this is needed. 

[Max Rockatansky]

At least temperature should be in Celsius, if other measures are in US customary. That is because the Celsius scale very logically sets its 0 and 100 to freezing and boiling point of water, a very important substance without which the life cannot exist. Fahrenheit on the other hand has its 0 and 100 in arbitrary points close to freezer temperature and human body temperature.

I'll take your word as an apparent numbers obsessed alien that life cannot exist in the universe without the presence of liquid water.

[kkt]

At least temperature should be in Celsius, if other measures are in US customary. That is because the Celsius scale very logically sets its 0 and 100 to freezing and boiling point of water, a very important substance without which the life cannot exist. Fahrenheit on the other hand has its 0 and 100 in arbitrary points close to freezer temperature and human body temperature.

Do you really think we didn't know how the Celsius scale was derived, either from our own schools or from you telling us over and over and over again?

Fahrenheit allows all temperatures found in weather where he lived to be represented as positive 1- or 2-digit values.

[SectorZ]

At least temperature should be in Celsius, if other measures are in US customary. That is because the Celsius scale very logically sets its 0 and 100 to freezing and boiling point of water, a very important substance without which the life cannot exist. Fahrenheit on the other hand has its 0 and 100 in arbitrary points close to freezer temperature and human body temperature.

Only at sea level. It discriminates against the super-majority of the world that does not live at sea level. Also, if sea level rises, what do we do with that perfect 0-100 scale?

[MikeTheActuary]

Fahrenheit allows all temperatures found in weather where he lived to be represented as positive 1- or 2-digit values.

Fahrenheit also works if you think of it as a comfort metric tracking "percent hot".

Yes, that reasoning breaks down when the temperature / heat index / windchill goes outside the 0°F-100°F....but it still sorta tracks.

[GaryV]

This seems appropriate: https://www.geeksoutfit.com/products/fahrenheit-celsius-kelvin-t-shirt

[kkt]

The UK should first adopted metric system when it had just been invented in France, namely in early 19th century.

Why would they use the measurement system of their then-current enemy?

The US was allied with France during that time, though. We could easily have switched.

Not really.  During the American revolution we were allied with old regime France.  But when France and the UK were fighting the wars following the French Revolution, the United States insisted on the neutral's right to trade with both sides, and that angered France to the the point where there was an undeclared quasi-war from 1798 to 1800.  The quasi-war ended, but after that we weren't really allies again until World War I.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quasi-War

[7/8]

Fahrenheit allows all temperatures found in weather where he lived to be represented as positive 1- or 2-digit values.

Fahrenheit also works if you think of it as a comfort metric tracking "percent hot".

Yes, that reasoning breaks down when the temperature / heat index / windchill goes outside the 0°F-100°F....but it still sorta tracks.

I've heard this argument before, but it seems off when room temperature (approx. 72F) is considered the most comfortable. Shouldn't that be 50 degrees by that logic (halfway between cold and hot)?

[MikeTheActuary]

I've heard this argument before, but it seems off when room temperature (approx. 72F) is considered the most comfortable. Shouldn't that be 50 degrees by that logic (halfway between cold and hot)?

There are two ways of looking at it:

1.  People prefer room temperature to be "a little warm" (actually, compared to my tastes, many people appear to like it "too warm" -- my thermostat is set at 62°F in winter).

2.  You'd either be faced with a scale were a degree was of inconsistent size, or you'd have to deal with negative temperatures more frequently.

[wxfree]

The metric system isn't just about base numbers and multiples.  It has an internal consistency.  A calorie is the amount of heat needed to change the temperature of one cubic centimeter (one milliliter) of water (which has a mass of one gram) by one centigrade.  To me, this is beautiful.  But what's also beautiful is having an intuitive understanding of what a measure means.  I know what a mile per hour is, but I have no idea what a kilometer per kilosecond is, or a decigram per centistoke.  I know exactly what a boatload is, but the idea of a metric boatload just confuses me.  We need to improve education, including bimeasure education, so that people will not have to be convinced to accept a superior system but instead will demand it because they understand why it's better.

I just learned that a buttload is a real thing (in a sense).  A butt is 126 gallons, and the unit is used in measurements of wine.  When someone brings a buttload of wine, it's far more than you might imagine.  Now we need to define a metric buttload, being both a multiple of ten and related to other measurements.  I propose that a metric buttload be defined as 1 × 10^x milliliters, being the amount of wine required to make 100 scientists smart enough to find the exponent in this calculation think that "buttload" is a good joke.

[1995hoo]

The metric system isn't just about base numbers and multiples.  It has an internal consistency.  A calorie is the amount of heat needed to change the temperature of one cubic centimeter (one milliliter) of water (which has a mass of one gram) by one centigrade.  To me, this is beautiful.  But what's also beautiful is having an intuitive understanding of what a measure means.  I know what a mile per hour is, but I have no idea what a kilometer per kilosecond is, or a decigram per centistoke.  I know exactly what a boatload is, but the idea of a metric boatload just confuses me.  We need to improve education, including bimeasure education, so that people will not have to be convinced to accept a superior system but instead will demand it because they understand why it's better.

I just learned that a buttload is a real thing (in a sense).  A butt is 126 gallons, and the unit is used in measurements of wine.  When someone brings a buttload of wine, it's far more than you might imagine.  Now we need to define a metric buttload, being both a multiple of ten and related to other measurements.  I propose that a metric buttload be defined as 1 × 10^x milliliters, being the amount of wine required to make 100 scientists smart enough to find the exponent in this calculation think that "buttload" is a good joke.

That's interesting. I had always assumed it was a corruption of "boatload" caused by people mishearing or misunderstanding the expression, much like how people say "butt naked" when they mean to say "buck naked." (Although maybe "butt naked" might be better, given that "buck naked" originally referred to slaves toiling naked in the fields.)

[kphoger]

I just learned that a buttload is a real thing (in a sense).  A butt is 126 gallons, and the unit is used in measurements of wine.  When someone brings a buttload of wine, it's far more than you might imagine.  Now we need to define a metric buttload, being both a multiple of ten and related to other measurements.  I propose that a metric buttload be defined as 1 × 10^x milliliters, being the amount of wine required to make 100 scientists smart enough to find the exponent in this calculation think that "buttload" is a good joke.

1 decibutt = 50 liters = quarter cask (used for Scotch whisky)
6 decibutts = 300 liters = barrique (used for cognac)
9 decibutts = 450 liters = puncheon (used for rum)
1 metric buttload = 500 liters (used for sherry)
2 metric buttloads = 1000 kiloliters = 1 metric tun (used for beer)

[Scott5114]

The metric system isn't just about base numbers and multiples.  It has an internal consistency.  A calorie is the amount of heat needed to change the temperature of one cubic centimeter (one milliliter) of water (which has a mass of one gram) by one centigrade.  To me, this is beautiful.  But what's also beautiful is having an intuitive understanding of what a measure means.  I know what a mile per hour is, but I have no idea what a kilometer per kilosecond is, or a decigram per centistoke.  I know exactly what a boatload is, but the idea of a metric boatload just confuses me.  We need to improve education, including bimeasure education, so that people will not have to be convinced to accept a superior system but instead will demand it because they understand why it's better.

I just learned that a buttload is a real thing (in a sense).  A butt is 126 gallons, and the unit is used in measurements of wine.  When someone brings a buttload of wine, it's far more than you might imagine.  Now we need to define a metric buttload, being both a multiple of ten and related to other measurements.  I propose that a metric buttload be defined as 1 × 10^x milliliters, being the amount of wine required to make 100 scientists smart enough to find the exponent in this calculation think that "buttload" is a good joke.

That's interesting. I had always assumed it was a corruption of "boatload" caused by people mishearing or misunderstanding the expression, much like how people say "butt naked" when they mean to say "buck naked." (Although maybe "butt naked" might be better, given that "buck naked" originally referred to slaves toiling naked in the fields.)

I assumed it was a censoring of assload, as in the amount a donkey can carry.

[kphoger]

I assumed it was a censoring of assload, as in the amount a donkey can carry.

It comes from the Latin word buttis, which means cask or barrel, by way of the Old French bot.

Etymologically speaking, then, a bottle is a small butt:  Latin buttis (barrel) → butticula (small barrel) → French boteille → English bottle

[vdeane]

The metric system isn't just about base numbers and multiples.  It has an internal consistency.  A calorie is the amount of heat needed to change the temperature of one cubic centimeter (one milliliter) of water (which has a mass of one gram) by one centigrade.  To me, this is beautiful.  But what's also beautiful is having an intuitive understanding of what a measure means.  I know what a mile per hour is, but I have no idea what a kilometer per kilosecond is, or a decigram per centistoke.  I know exactly what a boatload is, but the idea of a metric boatload just confuses me.  We need to improve education, including bimeasure education, so that people will not have to be convinced to accept a superior system but instead will demand it because they understand why it's better.

I just learned that a buttload is a real thing (in a sense).  A butt is 126 gallons, and the unit is used in measurements of wine.  When someone brings a buttload of wine, it's far more than you might imagine.  Now we need to define a metric buttload, being both a multiple of ten and related to other measurements.  I propose that a metric buttload be defined as 1 × 10^x milliliters, being the amount of wine required to make 100 scientists smart enough to find the exponent in this calculation think that "buttload" is a good joke.

That's interesting. I had always assumed it was a corruption of "boatload" caused by people mishearing or misunderstanding the expression, much like how people say "butt naked" when they mean to say "buck naked." (Although maybe "butt naked" might be better, given that "buck naked" originally referred to slaves toiling naked in the fields.)

I don't think I've ever heard "buttload" at all.  Only "boatload".  And I can say the same for my browser's spellchecker.

[kphoger]

I don't think I've ever heard "buttload" at all.  Only "boatload".  And I can say the same for my browser's spellchecker.

Now you'll hear it within the next two days.  It's like a law of nature.

[Rothman]

The metric system isn't just about base numbers and multiples.  It has an internal consistency.  A calorie is the amount of heat needed to change the temperature of one cubic centimeter (one milliliter) of water (which has a mass of one gram) by one centigrade.  To me, this is beautiful.  But what's also beautiful is having an intuitive understanding of what a measure means.  I know what a mile per hour is, but I have no idea what a kilometer per kilosecond is, or a decigram per centistoke.  I know exactly what a boatload is, but the idea of a metric boatload just confuses me.  We need to improve education, including bimeasure education, so that people will not have to be convinced to accept a superior system but instead will demand it because they understand why it's better.

I just learned that a buttload is a real thing (in a sense).  A butt is 126 gallons, and the unit is used in measurements of wine.  When someone brings a buttload of wine, it's far more than you might imagine.  Now we need to define a metric buttload, being both a multiple of ten and related to other measurements.  I propose that a metric buttload be defined as 1 × 10^x milliliters, being the amount of wine required to make 100 scientists smart enough to find the exponent in this calculation think that "buttload" is a good joke.

That's interesting. I had always assumed it was a corruption of "boatload" caused by people mishearing or misunderstanding the expression, much like how people say "butt naked" when they mean to say "buck naked." (Although maybe "butt naked" might be better, given that "buck naked" originally referred to slaves toiling naked in the fields.)

I don't think I've ever heard "buttload" at all.  Only "boatload".  And I can say the same for my browser's spellchecker.

Huh.  Heard both commonly.