Where did the farenheit scale get the start point of 32 from?

Question

I understand the use of 180 gradations from this 32 to 212 , 180 being the degrees in an arc across a straight line...but who / why choose 32 as a start point?

Answer 1

Hi. Zero deg Fahrenheit was established by mixing equal quantities of water and salt. On this scale pure water freezes at 32 degrees.

Answer 2

Fahrenheit wanted to avoid the negative temperatures which Ole Rømer's scale had produced in everyday use. Fahrenheit fixed his own body temperature as 100 °F (normal body temperature is closer to 98.6 °F, suggesting that Fahrenheit was suffering a fever when he conducted his experiments, that his thermometer was inaccurate, or lastly it is believed that he used a cow's temperature instead of his own), and divided his original scale into twelve divisions; later dividing each of these into 8 equal subdivisions produced a scale of 96 degrees. Fahrenheit noted that his scale placed the freezing point of water at 32 °F and the boiling point at 212 °F, a neat 180 degrees apart.

Answer 3

The one that I heard was that Mr. Gabriel Fahrenheit used the coldest day he could measure in his native Germany to be the zero and his own body temperature to be 100. And the freezing of water just happened to be at 32 by this scale.

Answer 4

fareinheit is measured from the freezing point of sea water (salt water) as zero. this is because sea water is the most common liquid on the planet. centigrade is measured using freezing point of fresh water as zero. the piont at which the two different scales cross is 32. So zero centigrade is 32 farenheit

Answer 5

32 is the freezing point of water.

Answer 6

It is unknown, prehaps it involves the way the Mercury works?

Answer 7

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farenheit#History

Answer 8

It's the temperature at which water freezes.

Answer 9

I don't know but it was there when I started school.

Answer 10

That's how old Sir Douglass Farhenheit was when he first got laid.