I want to know what you guys think of the metric system?
Personally I view it as a good system, however I hate some things about. I like the fact that you can convert easily by moving the decimal but its hard/confusing to remember all of the suffixes like mega, milli, etc. As a Canadian I'm familar with both the metric and imperial system, I can pretty much use both with no problem. In fact for some things I really like to use the imperial system since its used alot around here because Canada used to be an English colony. I like to measure my weight in pounds not kilos and my height in feet not meters. My old doctor liked it that way too. I like to look at car specs based on HP and ft/lbs (they use this on the new car stickers) not newton meters. I like using both systems and its nice to see everything here labelled in both types. Also I think the US would have a hard time converting now because of all the signs (millions$$) and people are too familiar with the imperial system. Canada converted in the 70's and people are still using miles.
I use either interchangeably.
Granted, there's room for rounding
Transeat In Exemplum: Let this stand as the example.
The metric system is the devil.
Metric System is based on scientific norms:
Boilling point of distilled water at mean sea Level: 100 degrees celsius
1 Meter: ~ 1 ten-millionth the distance beween the North and South poles around the circumference of the earth. (okay, this has been refined to a measure of distance light travels over a set amount of time).
1 litre of distilled water = 1 Kilogram.
1 mililitre of distilled water = 1 gram.
You derrive the lesser and greater denominations (ie centi, milli, micro, nano, pico; kilo, mega, giga, tera) by tacking on orders of magnitude (or 000) on either side of the decimal point. Instead of engineering using 32nds, 64's etc.. of an inch, you can skip down to mm, μm, nm or up to Km Mm, Gm, Tm.
It makes physical/fluid/mechanical engineering a lot easier, and electrical engineering doesn't work in anything but standard units (ie. you don't see a 1/8th ohm resistor or a 32nd of a volt).
Feet, inches and miles were based on the lengths of things that could vary (ie, feet were the length of the king's foot at the time, inches were based on the diameter of some kind of nut or seed IIRC, Miles were standards of 1000 paces).
Standardising isn't a bad thing, it's just a bit of a PITA to get used to. Look at Britain, they don't even use pounds for weight measure, it's stones.
Transeat In Exemplum: Let this stand as the example.
I would rather use the metric, even though I know the english system better since that's what I was taught. But honestly, I never use the english system unless it's something for personal use, in school and at work I use metric.
__________________________________________________
When it comes to sockets or wrenches, i'm really good at converting.
When it comes to other things, i'm not so good.
Alex: English/Imperial or American? (the measures are different)
Transeat In Exemplum: Let this stand as the example.
oh true, ya the english have their own wierd measurement system, I personally like the american system.
I like the american system better also.
Both are good systems I find. With metric, converting is easy since everything is in base 10. You don't have to remember that many units, just the regularly used one. How many people actually used mega or deca's? With imperial though, units are based on something that can be visualised. For example it's almost impossible to visualize 10 kPa but you can do it with 10 psi (pounds per square inch). Just imagine a 10 lb object on an area 1 inch x 1 inch.
I rather have metric because every developed country in the world uses it except the US plus converting between US and Imperial gets people killed. Literally.
______________________________________________________________
ToBoGgAn wrote:we are gonna take it in the ass and like it, cause thats what america does.
Slo2pt2 (Projekt Unknown?) wrote:One my SON is ADHD N.O.S and Autistic Spectrum Disorder. I will nto medicate him he will battle throught this himself and learn to control it.
When I was 12 they taught us in school that the metric system was going to replace the American system as part of a world-wide standardization plan.
26 years later, I'm still using miles, feet, inches, pounds and ounces. The only metric system that has become widely accepted is the elimination of glass quart pepsi bottles and the introduction of 1 liter and 2 liter plastic bottles.
Now my kids are in school hearing the same BS story about how SAE will be obsolete by the time they graduate high school. Ahhhh, history repeating itself...
John Wilken
2002 Cavalier
2.2 Vin code 4
Auto
I can see why it's taking so long... There's always going to be resistance to change to a better system.
Protracting the change-over is a bad idea, though. Seriously, pretty much every other country is using a standardised weights and measures system, what's the hold up?
Transeat In Exemplum: Let this stand as the example.
Some measurements, such as weight and height as you mentioned, are best recognised in imperial, so it's quite convenient to leave it that way, people get it.
I still prefer metric though. It's easy to convert, and I've used it all my life.
Can't say this constitutes an entry in the "War" forum, can't see it getting too heated
Gam, I'm most likely thinking American, didn't know there was a difference.
__________________________________________________
Well I favor keeping the imperial system in America, but also while displaying the metric measurement right beside it. That is the best way to get people used to it. Sell them a gallon of gas but yell how many liters they are buying as well. I think its best to use both.
There is one beef I have with the metric system - there are no fractions. Sometimes its just more accurate(sometimes easier too) to keep things in fraction form(which for those who don't know -- 1/3 means 1 dived by 3 basically it's division).
Take 1/3 * 600
imperial 1/3 * 600/1, 1* 600 = 600, then 600/3 = 200
Metric 1/3 = 0.33, 0.33 * 600 = 198
With that metric problem I only went 2 spaces beyond the decimal. The further you go the more accurate you will be. But that becomes a lot of extra calculating and time wasted - as well as space(be it paper or computer RAM etc). The fraction calculation is 100% accurate and is more (time and space) efficient in this case.
Of course the metric system can be better for some things too. That is why I think we should use both.
I've never heard of this "part throttle" before. Does it just bolt on?
Computers do not calculate things as fractions. 1/3*1/2 = 1/6 but to a computer it would be 0.166666 so that point is moot.
Some things just seem better in imperial measure. How much I weigh, how fast I'm going, that kind of thing, but that's just a social norm really. People in Canada will still talk about 100Mph and about trying to lose 10lbs but we know our cars has a 50 litre tank.
Personally the only real problem with imperial is converting from one measure to another. I can quickly convert from centimeters to meters to km, but to go from inches to feet to yards to miles is a real pain.
Quick, how many inches in a mile? 3 seconds or less...
How many cm in a km? 1x1000x100 = 100 000 (or the long way 1km = 1000m = 10 000dm = 100 000cm)
PAX
well hahahaha - a computer calulates the way you want it too. You can say - in C++, create your own class. you can preserve the fraction and make sure it is calculated. That is np. actually open calulator(the one included with windows) take 1/3 * 600, it comes up with 200 which is correct
I've never heard of this "part throttle" before. Does it just bolt on?
Bastardking3000 wrote:well hahahaha - a computer calulates the way you want it too. You can say - in C++, create your own class. you can preserve the fraction and make sure it is calculated. That is np. actually open calulator(the one included with windows) take 1/3 * 600, it comes up with 200 which is correct
I'm with hahaha on this. You can tell the program you're going to enter fractions and you can tell the program to spit out a fraction output, but when it's doing the actual calculations, it is in decimal. There's no such thing as fractions to a computer.
______________________________________________________________
ToBoGgAn wrote:we are gonna take it in the ass and like it, cause thats what america does.
Slo2pt2 (Projekt Unknown?) wrote:One my SON is ADHD N.O.S and Autistic Spectrum Disorder. I will nto medicate him he will battle throught this himself and learn to control it.
Alex Yingling wrote:Gam, I'm most likely thinking American, didn't know there was a difference.
Most people don't, you're in good company!
American measures are based on items found within the continental USA, and the Imperial measure is based on lengths of a certain part of a royal's body (feet, inch=length of first digit on right thumb, yard= distance from foot to hip, that kind of junk). Good thing there wasn't a dwarf gene active in the royal bloodline.
Transeat In Exemplum: Let this stand as the example.
Glace wrote:Bastardking3000 wrote:well hahahaha - a computer calulates the way you want it too. You can say - in C++, create your own class. you can preserve the fraction and make sure it is calculated. That is np. actually open calulator(the one included with windows) take 1/3 * 600, it comes up with 200 which is correct
I'm with hahaha on this. You can tell the program you're going to enter fractions and you can tell the program to spit out a fraction output, but when it's doing the actual calculations, it is in decimal. There's no such thing as fractions to a computer.
It is in decimal ONLY if you are doing a floating point calculation. Computers also calculate integers. Using integer division and then calculating the remainder(also something they can easily do) - you retain the fraction(remainder over divisor). Its really not that hard. And as I said - you can (say using c++ for example) create your own class making fractions quite practical for certain applications.
Now you say there is no such thing as fractions to a computer - and on a certain level you are right. But on that same level - there is no such thing as a decimal either. There is 1(on) and 0(off), nothing more. The decimals are a matter of translation(if that is the best term - I'm tired lol), and fractions are also a matter of translation no more or less than the decimal.
Of course a GUI (for example) falls into this category as well, its all the results of complex translation of 1s and 0s which your computer calculates.
I've never heard of this "part throttle" before. Does it just bolt on?
There are only 10 types of people on this Earth, those who understand binary and those who don't.
PAX
Xx Licher xX wrote:The metric system is the devil.
No, my friend. I'm the devil. And the devil doesn't like the metric system because the last time I was in Canada I failed to realize the speed limit was in clicks so let's just say I was speeding in a big way and frankly, the trooper, mountie, whatever they call them up there, was quite unhappy with me and showed me his displeasure with a really big speeding ticket. I tried to explain I was a stupid American driving on an interstate highway in the middle of nowhere at four in the morning, but he didn't seem to care.
Ha ha ha .. It's not Germany.. Don't you think it would be all over cars forums if you were actually allowed to drive 100 MPH in Canada?
PAX
Actually in the particular area I was it was 80. It was a highway, I shouldn't call it an interstate. But I was out in the middle of nowhere, the nearest town was some small podunk place I don't even remember the name of. I was about an hour from Calgary. But if my math is correct 80 clicks equates to about 50 or 55mph. Besides, stranger things had happened. I mean look at the whole "no speed limit" thing from what, Montana wasn't it? ... I figured I could talk him into believing me I seriously had no idea.
