3 ms·

having a unit of weight and a unit of volume share the same name is unspeakably stupid. why? WHY?

• masklinn 6y ago
  Apparently it's because a fluid ounce of water is about an (avoirdupois) ounce so, you know, super helpful reminder! Like the pound being a unit of currency, a unit of mass, a unit of force, a unit of energy and a unit of torque (especially the latter two, who doesn't love having foot-pound and foot-pound being completely different things?)
  • fanf2 6y ago
    An imperial fluid ounce was defined (metric style) to be exactly the volume of an ounce of water. The reason for the change in number of fl.oz. in a pint was to make a gallon weigh 10 lb.
  • ghaff 6y ago
    If you're in an engineering discipline that does calculations involving mass and force, it's probably a good idea to work in metric even if you need to convert the final answer back. At least in my experience, it's way too easy to mess up when using pound force, pound mass, and slugs.
  • iNerdier 6y ago
    At least the pound referred to a specific thing in its currency form (i.e. a pound of sterling silver) and technically it’s foot-pound and pound-foot for energy and torque, simple!
  • yread 6y ago
    And to confuse pound further: in Northern Ireland they pronounce pound and pint very similarly