Why the heck does America still use outdated measurement and date units?

[eyoungren]

And your currency - from the outset - was metric.

Yes, although most American's wouldn't see it that way. The French influence of the time period I believe.

Now, what does my head in is pence and quid and fortnights and stuff like that. 🙂

 

[raythompsontn]

Exactly how many people have been put on the moon by countries using the metric system?

 

[eyoungren]

Exactly how many people have been put on the moon by countries using the metric system?

And how many will return to the moon (and Mars) using the Imperial system?

 

[DaveFromCampbelltown]

I've worked in acute hospitals, in health care. So we Americans that work in the sciences (STEM) are familiar with the metric system. We measure medication and drugs in terms of MLs (milliliters). And some doses are in micrograms, mcg, especially the potent opioids and narcotics.

Altho for shorthand speak.... we say things like "Yeah can you hand me that 10cc (ten cee-cee) syringe, please!"

Do European health care workers use that term? 1cc = 1 cubic centimeter = 1ml

The dosage for one particular Malaria medicine is 0.005% of the patient's body weight.
For a 100kg patient, that comes out to 5 mls.
Now, work that out in oz for a 15 stone patient. Display your working for an extra 5 points.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

The reasons why metrics wasn't adopted by the US:

Why hasn't the U.S. adopted the metric system?

Have a burning question? Email it to askanything@popsci.com

www.popsci.com

The benefits of switching are negligible, but the costs are huge.​

Today, the problem with metric is the same as it’s always been: The benefits of switching are negligible, but the costs are huge. Manufacturers would have to convert values on packaging. Everyday people would have to replace their tape measures, switch to metric wrenches, waste time figuring out what it means to say it is 20 degrees Celsius outside.

Why fixing something that isn't broken? US Americans who have the need to use the metric system do so already. There are a lot of other things that are greatly more important than arguing about measurement systems used around the world.

What follows is an example ammo reloader and manufactures know very well: one can weight gunpowder in grams or grains. However, a lot of reloader in the US prefer to weight powder in grains, specially when very small portions of powder are added to a load. For example, lest say that a I want to trickle a .5 grain of powder to a bullet case when reloading, but I decide to use grams instead. In this case .5 grains = 0.03239946 grams. It is much faster to read .5 grain than is to read (or write) 0.3239946 grams, at least for the average US reloader or ammo manufacturer. Another example: a 250-grain bullet = 16.19973-gram bullet, which is not a big problem one way or another depending on which scale one uses or is accustomed to (grams or grains).

Like most Americans I don't have a problem with whichever measuring system anybody else uses. The fact is that I do enjoy the freedom to choose what I want or need to use.

 

[Aves]

my personal experience:

I'm Italian (living in the US), and I learned how to measure in inches/feet/miles, weigh in ounces/pounds or pint/gallons, cook in tsp/tbsp/cups and check the temp in Fahrenheit.

I like both methods and actually I'm happy I know and can correctly use both 🙂

 

[JT2002TJ]

Lowe's, Home Depot, Sentry and other hardware stores, automobile parts stores, and so on, have both metric and standard bolts, nuts, washers, etc. Not only that, but in different types of metal and plastics (stainless steel, zinc-coated, copper, and so on.

By the way, when talking about horses as some have above, it reminds me of the "horse power" used for electric motors, engines, and so on. After all 1HP is slightly different in metric numbers 🙂

I stand by what I said... I didn't say there weren't any, just that there are significantly less. In NJ, NY, every home improvement store has at least a 10:1 ratio of SAE to Metric. There are many times when I was working on vehicles, I would have to go to 2-3 stores just to find they didn't have the correct metric bolt (regardless of strength). I would end up having to order the bolt online or going to the dealership. These weren't even automotive specialty bolts.

Most of the time when I find the metric bolt I am looking for, it is the incorrect type of metal/finish, and would cause a reaction if used. When I had my Jeep, I would find the incorrect strength metric bolts 8.8 when 10.9 or higher was called for. In the SAE, I could always find every bolt option, in every coating and strength (Grade 5, Grade 8).

My original post:

if you go to any home improvement store, you will be hard pressed to find metric nuts/bolts/hardware. The Standard equipment is everywhere, and there may or may not be a bay of metric. This is more than just for vehicles. These are used for all kinds of home improvement projects.

 

[eyoungren]

The reasons why metrics wasn't adopted by the US:

Why hasn't the U.S. adopted the metric system?

Have a burning question? Email it to askanything@popsci.com

www.popsci.com

Why fixing something that isn't broken?

You keep repeating that. I suppose because you never wanted to start to begin with, so that's an easy to go to phrase.

But I'm going to use another American saying on you…

Finish what you started.

We started this in the 1970s. Whether you were onboard with it at the time or not, we did.

We haven't finished it. We stopped in the middle of the job, walked off the job site and didn't come back.

 

[SalisburySam]

We haven't finished it. We stopped in the middle of the job, walked off the job site and didn't come back.

You’re right of course, but to no ill effect whatever.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

The reasons why metrics wasn't adopted by the US:

Why hasn't the U.S. adopted the metric system?

Have a burning question? Email it to askanything@popsci.com

www.popsci.com

Why fixing something that isn't broken? US Americans who have the need to use the metric system do so already. There are a lot of other things that are greatly more important than arguing about measurement systems used around the world.

What follows is an example ammo reloader and manufactures know very well: one can weight gunpowder in grams or grains. However, a lot of reloader in the US prefer to weight powder in grains, specially when very small portions of powder are added to a load. For example, lest say that a I want to trickle a .5 grain of powder to a bullet case when reloading, but I decide to use grams instead. In this case .5 grains = 0.03239946 grams. It is much faster to read .5 grain than is to read (or write) 0.3239946 grams, at least for the average US reloader or ammo manufacturer. Another example: a 250-grain bullet = 16.19973-gram bullet, which is not a big problem one way or another depending on which scale one uses or is accustomed to (grams or grains).

Like most Americans I don't have a problem with whichever measuring system anybody else uses. The fact is that I do enjoy the freedom to choose what I want or need to use.

@eyoungren has answered you well, but I will add two further comments to your post.

The first is that using ammunition as an example is not one that would be deemed of much relevance to many, if not most, of the countries that use the metric system, precisely because most people have no call - no reason - to want to use ammunition. In my country, the police aren't armed, let alone the population.

A different example might serve to illustrate this point better.

As for the argument: "Why fix something that isn't broken"?

Well, for all that this site has been set up to discuss matters related to Apple (and, by extension, tech related matters), every single time Apple has released a new operating system, this is exactly the form my groaning complaint takes: "Why fix something that isn't broken?"

 

[eyoungren]

You’re right of course, but to no ill effect whatever.

Well, to no ill effect of the average American. I'm sure though that if you asked any American corporation about whether they'd like to stay in both worlds, they'd probably tell you one or the other in response.

Pretty sure by now the cost of getting to the midway point has long been passed on to the American consumer. Of course, once prices are raised it's rare for any company to lower them. So, we're still paying for that.

But no ill effect, sure, because the cost of a 12 pack of soda or a box of crackers isn't broken down. What you can't see won't hurt you.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

You keep repeating that. I suppose because you never wanted to start to begin with, so that's an easy to go to phrase.

But I'm going to use another American saying on you…

Finish what you started.

We started this in the 1970s. Whether you were onboard with it at the time or not, we did.

We haven't finished it. We stopped in the middle of the job, walked off the job site and didn't come back.

I understand what you had to say in relation to the US Congress starting and not completing the job. But the idea relating to switching to the metric system started much earlier:

Why hasn't the U.S. adopted the metric system?

Have a burning question? Email it to askanything@popsci.com

www.popsci.com

Thomas Jefferson first tried to move the nation toward a decimal-based system in 1789. But without support from scientists, his idea flopped. More than a century later, in 1906, telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell told Congress that “few people have any adequate conception of the amount of unnecessary labor involved in the use of our present weights and measures.”

In 1975 Congress passed the Metric Conversion Act, but not as a mandate forcing the entire nation to abide by it. The reason why it was not adopted by the people related to economics: too expensive for the private sector (all industries and businesses in the private sector).

As I mentioned before I was born in a place where the metric system is the norm, and then immigrated to the US in my late teens. I don't have a problem with either the metric or the US customary measuring system. The reason why I "repeated" was to point out the reasons why Congress could not make the act mandatory. Congress could not exist without the financial support of the nation's private sector.

 

[eyoungren]

I understand what you had to say in relation to the US Congress starting and not completing the job. But the idea relating to switching to the metric system started much earlier:

Why hasn't the U.S. adopted the metric system?

Have a burning question? Email it to askanything@popsci.com

www.popsci.com

In 1975 Congress passed the Metric Conversion Act, but not as a mandate forcing the entire nation to abide by it. The reason why it was not adopted by the people related to economics: too expensive for the private sector (all industries and businesses in the private sector).

As I mentioned before I was born in a place where the metric system is the norm, and then immigrated to the US in my late teens. I don't have a problem with either the metric or the US customary measuring system. The reason why I "repeated" was to point out the reasons why Congress could not make the act mandatory. Congress could not exist without the financial support of the nation's private sector.

I'm not really buying this.

Oh sure, I can see that it started earlier. But I'm not buying the expense that the article you linked to is citing.

In particular, "Manufacturers would have to convert values on packaging."

The Fair Labeling and Packaging Act has required metric to be on all labels since 1994. Why is there a cost of converting if metric is already required to be on the label?

Fair Packaging and Labeling Act - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Furthermore, many industries have consistently asked Congress to ONLY print metric on their labels. They've been rebuffed. And its Congress that's stopping them.

Metrication in the United States - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

In June 2010 NIST called for an amendment to the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act that would allow manufacturers the option to voluntarily label their packages solely in metric units, rather than being dual-labeled with U.S. customary units and metric units as is currently required. The goal of these changes would be to encourage metric labeling, leading to greater agreement of U.S. labeling laws and simplifying domestic and international commerce. NIST Metric Program coordinator Elizabeth Gentry added that the proposed changes were "in response to requests by U.S. manufacturers and consumers", particularly that "manufacturers want to take control of the limited net quantity of contents real estate on their packaging."

Back to your article…

Everyday people would have to replace their tape measures…

I don't know about you, but most current tape measures sold in stores seem to already have metric on them alongside imperial. I can see a period where this is continued to be allowed, but I don't see why this is a problem when metric is already there.

switch to metric wrenches

Most people have these already. Possibly the article is recognizing that fact by not stating you'd have to buy or replace your wrenches. Still don't see a problem.

waste time figuring out what it means to say its 20 degrees Celsius outside

This I can see, because most of your weather channels and your morning weather reports are all in standard. I'd hazard to guess though that any credentialed weather reporter already can speak in metric. They just don't because the studios don't want to lose ratings.

Certainly the article doesn't mention other things. There are exemptions for certain industries in the Metric Conversion Act. But personally, I think it just comes down to stubbornness.

I'll admit, I've never been a fan of metric. But it's become so prevalent that you begin to think in these terms. I just don't see it costing as much as implied. It's not like we have to toss stuff overnight.

But in any case, the public may soon well do an end run around Congress anyway. When Congress finally breaks down and mandates this it won't be news because the public will have moved on long before the lobbyists gave up. It's happening now anyway.

 

[DaveFromCampbelltown]

OTOH, my shifting spanner does both metric and SAE.

 

[Herdfan]

You can interchange tools if you like, but it's much simpler to buy a package that has both. Mechanics have both, and so most Americans who perform vehicle maintenance.

I have way too many tools.

Wait, is that possible? Did I really say that? 😱

 

[chown33]

I have way too many tools.

Wait, is that possible? Did I really say that? 😱

You have an opportunity to obtain more and better tool storage.

I enjoy synergizing multiple threads.

 

[Solomani]

And your currency - from the outset - was metric.

I'm glad the monthly calendar is Gregorian, not metric.

I really don't want to work a 10-day work week!

Imagine telling your 7-year old "Your birthday was just yesterday. So your next birthday will be.... in another 999 days." 🤣

 

[Herdfan]

You have an opportunity to obtain more and better tool storage.

I enjoy synergizing multiple threads.

Won't help. Still won't be able to locate the tool I used 30 second earlier. 😱😂

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I'm glad the monthly calendar is Gregorian, not metric.

I really don't want to work a 10-day work week!

Imagine telling your 7-year old "Your birthday was just yesterday. So your next birthday will be.... in another 999 days." 🤣

In such discussions, the temptation exists to advise those who are wedded to Imperial measurements that they consider reverting to the Roman method of enumerating and numbering and ditch this silly - if convenient (and decimal) - Arabic system we use at present.

 

[DaveFromCampbelltown]

Won't help. Still won't be able to locate the tool I used 30 second earlier. 😱😂

That's because they move all by themselves. Often behind something that wasn't there before.

 

[Herdfan]

In such discussions, the temptation exists to advise those who are wedded to Imperial measurements that they consider reverting to the Roman method of enumerating and numbering and ditch this silly - if convenient (and decimal) - Arabic system we use at present.

You know, the biggest issue I have with the metric system is temp. I can see a liter or a meter in my head. But I can't seem to wrap my head around Celsius aside from Freezing & Boiling. I was watching Heavy Rescue:401 the other day and they were talking about the temps being -15. I had to pick up my phone and do the conversion.

I'm sure if I were immersed in it I would pick it up, but otherwise, I need to convert it.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

You know, the biggest issue I have with the metric system is temp. I can see a liter or a meter in my head. But I can't seem to wrap my head around Celsius aside from Freezing & Boiling. I was watching Heavy Rescue:401 the other day and they were talking about the temps being -15. I had to pick up my phone and do the conversion.

I'm sure if I were immersed in it I would pick it up, but otherwise, I need to convert it.

As I grew up with both, I'm equally comfortable with either system and can convert from one to the other more or less automatically.

 

[Apple fanboy]

OTOH, my shifting spanner does both metric and SAE.

Mine often converts the hexagon to a different shape altogether! Usually accompanied by bashing of knuckles and swear words!

 

[Apple fanboy]

You know, the biggest issue I have with the metric system is temp. I can see a liter or a meter in my head. But I can't seem to wrap my head around Celsius aside from Freezing & Boiling. I was watching Heavy Rescue:401 the other day and they were talking about the temps being -15. I had to pick up my phone and do the conversion.

I'm sure if I were immersed in it I would pick it up, but otherwise, I need to convert it.

I grew up with Fahrenheit. When we switched to centigrade I used to convert it back in my head for a bit. Now I just use the centigrade and Fahrenheit I’ve all but forgotten.

 

[Apple fanboy]

As I grew up with both, I'm equally comfortable with either system and can convert from one to the other more or less automatically.

Same. I use some for one thing, others for another.
I weigh myself in stones and pounds.
I drink a pint of beer or 330ml if I have a soda.
I measure in mm, but my height I only know in feet and inches.
I run in miles. My car uses mph.
I don’t really weigh ingredients too often, but would just match whatever the recipe said with the scales. It does both.