We being the U.S., of course. Aren't we pretty much the only country still using whatever the hell it is we're using? Correct me if i'm wrong. muchisimas gracias.
2007-03-28 21:38:02 · 15 answers · asked by jamoncita 5 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Other - Science
People in the US just don't know how much it costs them not to convert.
For international trade the US is going to have to switch eventually though so the people who actually like the old crappy 'system' are going to have to live with a good measurement system so Imperial will eventually die (and no country that switches to metric goes back to crap measurements).
Though the fact that the US government didn't take leadership and convert itself is another factor.
2007-03-28 21:47:11 · answer #1 · answered by bestonnet_00 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Although convenient for calculation, the metric system has many draw backs in day to day use. 10 is a pretty useless number as it does not divide by 3 or 4 which makes it inconvenient for packaging and sharing.
The root of the problem is base 10 arithmetic. The world needs to change to base 12 and then we can have a much better 'metric' system based on convenience to the user rather than digit count.
2007-03-29 04:57:05 · answer #2 · answered by Roger B 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The olde English system was an "everyman's" system. Know your show size? Mens shoes, that's your foot's length in inches. Walk a thousand paces? That is a mile. Nose to finger tip? That is a yard. How tall is your horse? Use your hand. A system everybody could use without having a laser or reference to some standard in some vault somewhere.
Actually, I think a lot of the US has quietly converted. Check the bolts on your car. Not sure, but I think we went metric on that long ago.
2007-03-29 05:21:46 · answer #3 · answered by ZORCH 6 · 1⤊ 2⤋
There are a lot of good answers here, but I think we are converting without knowing. For example I am close to 40, but I do not think of volumes in terms of pints or gallons, I think of them in liters or milliliters.
Its a conceptual/practical correlation. If a person handles and deals in a unit system, they get used to that system. If you are always picking up a liter of water, your brain keys in on that volume and knows the amount after a while.
America was an agricultural nation for so long and steeped in the traditions of "English" education that its hard for us to overcome, especially as our industrial revolution picked up the systems from our agricultural past.
As we move into the 21st C and we become more technical, we will continue to adopt SI.
But in my opinion we should go whole hog and convert.
5280 ft = 1 mile, that's useful...:)
2007-03-29 09:56:02 · answer #4 · answered by DrSean 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, you aren't the only country still using it.
In Britain, the Road Traffic Act forbids the use of metric speed and distance measures on the highways- everything is in miles and yards. Domestic gas fittings are typically measured in inches.
In Germany and Holland, plumbing fixtures are typically measured in inches. Across the entire world, distances at sea are measured in nautical miles, while speed is measured in knots. All aircraft (except in China for some reason), measure their speed in knots, and their altitude in feet. Basically, most countries use a random mish-mash of different units to measure different things, and frankly it doesn't pose a problem once you get used to it. When people campaign obsessively for metrication in all things, I can only assume that it's because they are incapable of coping with anything more complicated than counting to ten.
2007-03-29 05:56:20 · answer #5 · answered by Ian I 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
You'll have to wait till all the old people have died. That's what some old dear said in Australia when we converted to metric umpteen years ago "Why didn't they wait till all the old people had died?"
2007-03-29 05:21:48 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
I heard the measurement system adopted in US was chose to protect Americans company from outside economy competition.
2007-03-29 05:22:47 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Great Question !!! If you can count to "10" you can learn the metric system !!! Now all you have to do is convince everyone else...Oye !
2007-03-29 04:46:29 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
When there is a system called SI system is being used largely in the world, i don't think any other system is required.
2007-03-29 04:41:40 · answer #9 · answered by Mahmood 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Well I'm English and don't want to use Kilo's or litres or whatever Europe has foisted on us. Life is not about being making everything easier for those who don't want to use their brains. Well done USA for still keeping it's individuality
2007-03-29 04:46:56 · answer #10 · answered by keeprockin 7 · 2⤊ 2⤋