When did elephants become a unit of measure?

[steve2112]

I love Adam Savage! (well not in that way)

Good video of Adam thats worth watching: http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/adam_savage_s_obsessions.html

I like his TED talks. I'm trying to find the results of that survey now.

Oh yeah: one other weird unit of measure our UK folks might be able to explain. Stone? What's up with that? I can rough conversions of kilograms to pounds, kilometers to miles, etc, but stone confuses me every time. I'll see stuff like "woman loses 8 st on diet!" and it just makes my brain hurt.

 

[Jaffa Cake]

Oh yeah: one other weird unit of measure our UK folks might be able to explain. Stone? What's up with that? I can rough conversions of kilograms to pounds, kilometers to miles, etc, but stone confuses me every time. I'll see stuff like "woman loses 8 st on diet!" and it just makes my brain hurt.

14 lbs = 1 stone.

Unfortunately though most conversion charts don't offer a simple way to convert stones into elephants, requiring some complex sums.

 

[steve2112]

14 lbs = 1 stone.

Unfortunately though most conversion charts don't offer a simple way to convert stones into elephants, requiring some complex sums.

It seems even the Oompa Loompas at Google don't have a conversion for that one. It can tell me that 1 stone = 6.35029318 kg, but it can't tell me how many stones in an elephant. I suspect such a conversion would be almost as complex as Bistro Math.

 

[unid]

Unfortunately though most conversion charts don't offer a simple way to convert stones into elephants, requiring some complex sums.

Forgive me if this sounds aegist, but for younger users who don't know the formula there is a gorgonium app that turns elephants into stones.

 

[iowamensan]

My car's speedometer measures in FPF - Furlongs Per Fortnight

 

[snberk103]

It seems even the Oompa Loompas at Google don't have a conversion for that one. It can tell me that 1 stone = 6.35029318 kg, but it can't tell me how many stones in an elephant. I suspect such a conversion would be almost as complex as Bistro Math.

Maybe you need to specify Indian or African?

 

[RedTomato]

Ask 10 people how large Wales is. (or Rhodes Island for you USians.)

Answers:

1. Dunno
2. Same size as Wales.
3. Big place innit?
4. Dunno
5. ****ed if I know.
6. Search me.
7. It's full of sheep and ravers innit?
8. Dunno.
9. Why d'y'wanna know?
10. About 10m long, swims in the sea.

 

[Jaffa Cake]

I believe Wales can be accurately measured in the amount of rainforest destroyed each year.

Or is that Belgium? I can never remember...

 

[snberk103]

Ask 10 people how large Wales is. (or Rhodes Island for you USians.)

Answers:

1. Dunno
2. Same size as Wales.
3. Big place innit?
4. Dunno
5. ****ed if I know.
6. Search me.
7. It's full of sheep and ravers innit?
8. Dunno.
9. Why d'y'wanna know?
10. About 10m long, swims in the sea.

Nonetheless, tell those same 10 people that a chip truck turned over on the M1 and left an oil slick the size of Wales, and they'd all nod knowingly and say something like "That's pretty big, eh!"

And, in a trivia vein. The state you call 'Rhodes Island' while being the smallest of the 50 states, has the longest name with an official moniker of "Rhode Island and Providence Plantations". Beth only one of your 10 people above would have known that!

 

[MrCheeto]

I believe Wales can be accurately measured in the amount of rainforest destroyed each year.

Destroyed? My dear friend, I believe you mean destructively repurposed.

 

[Peterkro]

Nonetheless, tell those same 10 people that a chip truck turned over on the M1 and left an oil slick the size of Wales, and they'd all nod knowingly and say something like "That's pretty big, eh!"

And, in a trivia vein. The state you call 'Rhodes Island' while being the smallest of the 50 states, has the longest name with an official moniker of "Rhode Island and Providence Plantations". Beth only one of your 10 people above would have known that!

Icebergs are good for ridiculous comparisons B15 for instance was said to be as big as Connecticut whilst B17 was just a normal Rhode Island. In the wider world Australian Capital Territory and Luxembourg seem to be ready reckoners.Swaziland and Gambia can be used if you want to baffle north Americans entirely.