# How do you feel about the metric system? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 19, 2015, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115 "2015-02-19T19:08:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Mogle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mogle/32/12021_2.png) [@Mogle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mogle)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/161 "2015-02-23T09:18:01Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Neither is a meter. True enough, errors in the 18th century surveys resulted in the metre being about 0.2 mm too short, but it was the original definition. ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 9:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/162 "2015-02-23T09:36:41Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > But the one thing that drives me crazy - why do they have to give fuel consumption is litres per 100km? > > It should be km per litre… This baffles me (as European) as well, since in daily use, we always speak about the amount of km per litre. ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/163 "2015-02-23T10:49:14Z")
The one thing that almost never comes up always is the amount of time it takes to do conversions in your head or on paper/calculator within the standard system itself. Its the reason a lot of manufacturers convert everything to thousands of an inch and work from there…which is just another way of converting to metric. I swear in this country we just hate our grandkids and want them to suffer through all the bullshit we had to deal with. ---
**Author:** ![Mogle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mogle/32/12021_2.png) [@Mogle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mogle)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/164 "2015-02-23T11:41:18Z")
> [@polar\_bear](#): > > This baffles me (as European) as well, since in daily use, we always speak about the amount of km per litre. Who is “we”? Europe is a big place with many cultures and languages, what is true is one country is not necessarily true in another. While I might slightly disagree with the people in Brussels notions about “litre per 100km”(the proper way is per 10 km damnit!), I find the idea of “km per litre” completely alien. ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/165 "2015-02-23T11:59:49Z")
> [@Mogle](#): > > Who is “we”? Europe is a big place with many cultures and languages, what is true is one country is not necessarily true in another. > While I might slightly disagree with the people in Brussels notions about “litre per 100km”(the proper way is per 10 km damnit!), I find the idea of “km per litre” completely alien. Ok, In the Netherlands is common and I’ve heard it often enough in other countries as well. Off course it is very possible this is different in some countries. ---
**Author:** ![slaphead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9bcb4/32.png) [@slaphead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slaphead)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/166 "2015-02-23T12:12:28Z")
> [@Mogle](#): > > Only because you’re used it, speaking as someone living a country that’s been metric since the 19th century I can assure you that metric perfectly fine for everyday life. > > So far in this thread I have not seen a single argument in favour of Imperial units that doesn’t essentially amount to ‘Because I’m used to it’. Exactly. The majority of the human race uses metric for nearly all purposes without any difficulties whatever and has done so for several generations now. It’s not like there is a ‘fahrenheit/celsius’ switch in the genome. > [@orcenio](#): > > I assure you the range is pretty “natural” if you grew up using it. Here’s a chart to help. > > Outdoor Temp Chart: > +31 Hot > 21 to 30 Warm > 11 to 20 Comfortable > 1 to 10 Cold > -0 Freezing > [@eschereal](#): > > Fahrenheit temperature ranges are straightforward enough. Above 100 tends to be hazardous; above 85 is just plain hot; 65-75 is livingroom temperature; 45-55 is a bit chilly; below 45 is cold; 20 is unpleasantly cold; and around 5~0°F is where your snot starts to crystallize. I think that is a very practical value. At -5°C, exposed mucus membranes tend to be a non-issue, I find the F reference point far more useful. Eh, these scales tend to be very personal and depend on what you are used to, and it’s not like you have to be precise. I tend to find that the nose hairs begin to freeze together at around -10c, eyelashes start freezing together around -20c, once it gets to -30c you have to take serious precautions before going out. I have no issues going out to get firewood in my shirtsleeves at -5 but I wouldn’t want to stay outside more than a few minutes. ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/167 "2015-02-23T16:41:39Z")
> [@Mogle](#): > > Who is “we”? Europe is a big place with many cultures and languages, what is true is one country is not necessarily true in another. > While I might slightly disagree with the people in Brussels notions about “litre per 100km”(the proper way is per 10 km damnit!), I find the idea of “km per litre” completely alien. Whaddya mean? km per litre is totally natural, intuitive and straight forward - what is there alien about it?? What use is litres per 10 km? When do you ever drive just 10km? Do you ever think, "Oh, I’ll put 11.29 litres in my car so I can go 123 km? You don’t do you? Whereas with litres per km it is simple - my car right now is giving 10.4 km to the litre - wanna drive 123 km? Uhm…that’s 12 litres - My local petrol kiosk even has the option of delivery by volume or by value…:D:D:D ---
**Author:** ![Didactylos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a183cd/32.png) [@Didactylos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Didactylos)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/168 "2015-02-23T16:58:17Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > The English agreed to use the French measurement system, and the French agreed to use the English Meridians It was a commercial agreement The french started using Greenwich meridian in[1911-14](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_meridian), by which point it was essentially world standard. The british went metric in the seventies, following the lead of everybody except the US. It’s hard to see these two events, seperated by 60 years, as an agreement between the two countries. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/169 "2015-02-23T17:01:21Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > OK, suppose that the French did decide to make a meter equal to a yard. Which yard? There were multiple units by that name. There were multiple units by _every_ name. True, but one was in common use and the rest were not. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/170 "2015-02-23T17:11:24Z")
> [@orcenio](#): > > I assure you the range is pretty “natural” if you grew up using it. Here’s a chart to help. > > Outdoor Temp Chart: > +31 Hot > 21 to 30 Warm > 11 to 20 Comfortable > 1 to 10 Cold > -0 Freezing Well, feet and pounds are ‘natural’ if you grow up with them, but they’re still stupid. So it seems like this is the same argument, only in favor of Celsius this time, rather than for the measuring units we Americans use. Kinda weird to see that shoe on the other foot. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/171 "2015-02-23T17:21:27Z")
> [@funky\_little\_lee](#): > > I don’t think anyone has mentioned something I once heard a carpenter say, which is that a plus of the English system is that things can be divided in many ways, rather than just by 10, 5, and 2. For instance, a yard can be divided by 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, 12, and it just makes things handier. > > Now again this is something I heard someone else say, and math isn’t my strong point, so it’s totally possible I’m wrong, but is there any truth to this? Depends on what measurements you’re talking about. Sure, it would have been a kindness if God had created us with 6 fingers on each hand, and then our decimal system would be base-12, which would divide evenly by 2,3,4,6, and 12. But most American measurements (let’s not blame them on the English anymore) don’t have that advantage. There are 12 inches in a foot, where this would be true, but there are 32 ounces in a quart. The only divisors there are powers of 2. Same with 16 ounces in a pound, and with 2000 pounds in a ton, you’ve just got multiples of 2 and 5 as your divisors. Also, the advantage of even division (which as a math geek, I’m all in favor of) comes with the disadvantage of pain-in-the-neck scaling, and different scales for everything. In metric, 1000 grams is a kilogram and 1/1000 gram is a milligram. 1000 meters is a kilometer and 1/1000 meter is a millimeter. Gotta like that. ---
**Author:** ![Mogle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mogle/32/12021_2.png) [@Mogle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mogle)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/172 "2015-02-23T17:26:48Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > True, but one was in common use and the rest were not. Which one would that have been in 18th century France? Did the French even have a unit equivalent to the yard? It’s not like the Imperial system was an international standard before the invention of the metre. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/173 "2015-02-23T17:37:20Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > Also, the advantage of even division (which as a math geek, I’m all in favor of) comes with the disadvantage of pain-in-the-neck scaling, and different scales for everything. In metric, 1000 grams is a kilogram and 1/1000 gram is a milligram. 1000 meters is a kilometer and 1/1000 meter is a millimeter. . Except for the Metric Tonne, the hectare, and a few others. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/174 "2015-02-23T20:47:47Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > Well, feet and pounds are ‘natural’ if you grow up with them, but they’re still stupid. So it seems like this is the same argument, only in favor of Celsius this time, rather than for the measuring units we Americans use. > > Kinda weird to see that shoe on the other foot. The shoe isn’t on the other foot there.The argument was that Celsius feels as natural as Fahrenheit if you group up with it. Exactly what you’re saying. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/175 "2015-02-23T20:54:43Z")
I can deal with the metric system perfectly well, except for some reason when height is expressed in cm. Metric is better for science, no argument there. I have lived in a metric country and had no problem. However, I do feel that the English system is more practical for everyday use and mental math. 12 and 16 are just easier to manipulate in whole numbers than 10 is. An inch is a handy measurement that is about as long as the top half of my thumb, whereas a centimeter is based on a pretty arbitrary measurement (the Earth’s circumference) that doesn’t mean anything in everyday life. I can eyeball measurements in either system, but I prefer inches for sewing, since I’m used to them. ---
**Author:** ![funky\_little\_lee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e95f7d/32.png) [@funky\_little\_lee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/funky_little_lee)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/176 "2015-02-24T16:30:02Z")
> [@Rick](#): > > 1000mm > /2= 500mm > /4= 250mm > /5= 200mm > /8= 125mm > /10= 100mm > /20= 50mm > Subtract 1mm > 999/3= 333mm > /9= 111mm > What’s your point? > Trust me when I tell you that once you start laying projects out in metric you will wonder why the fuck you ever thought feet/inches/fractions was a good idea. No, I wasn’t talking about myself, just about what someone said to me. From my personal perspective, the reason why Americans aren’t too anxious to change is the same reason why most don’t speak a language other than English: we just don’t need to in our daily lives, living in a large country where the English language, and English measurements, are ubiquitous no matter where we go. Now you can say, “Yeah, but it’s a global world these days,” and you’d be right, but I don’t think that much impacts people’s perception of their everyday reality. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/177 "2015-02-24T16:34:50Z")
> [@funky\_little\_lee](#): > > I don’t think anyone has mentioned something I once heard a carpenter say, which is that a plus of the English system is that things can be divided in many ways, rather than just by 10, 5, and 2. For instance, a yard can be divided by 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, 12, and it just makes things handier. > > Now again this is something I heard someone else say, and math isn’t my strong point, so it’s totally possible I’m wrong, but is there any truth to this? The same explaination has been given for pre-decimal English money. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/178 "2015-02-24T16:46:18Z")
> [@dangermom](#): > > 12 and 16 are just easier to manipulate in whole numbers than 10 is. Please tell me you are trying to satarise some of the discussion here, as otherwise that is just crazy talk. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/179 "2015-02-24T19:25:42Z")
I don’t like Celsius because then there would be too many days below zero. I don’t like kilometers because I live in the Mile High City and it would lose a lot of punch to be the 1.6 Kilometer High City. (Although since marijuana is now legal I guess they could just call it the High City.) ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115/180 "2015-02-24T19:45:39Z")
> [@bengangmo](#): > > New Zealand converted in 1969 (I think) - just a bit before my time, > When my father did a big renovation job, it was 2" by 4" joists and 4’ by 8’ sheets of ply. > > Now you go to the hardware store it’s not labelled like that, but 25mm x 50mm and 1200mm x 2400mm is just as intuitive and easier to work with. Just a nitpick: 1200 x 2400 is about right for a 4 by 8 sheet of plywood, but 25mm x 50mm corresponds to no common cut. Two-by-fours are an odd size that seems to be something like 7/8" = 1. I measured a two-by-four as about 37mm by 88mm. Not exactly sure why that standard came about, perhaps it had to do with accounting for the kerf, but in the end, saying “two by fours” is easier than precise terminology, and whatever the standard is is unimportant other than that it is the standard and that you get stuff you need, that works. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-feel-about-the-metric-system/713115.md?page=10)