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Yet regimes all over Europe adapted it anyway. The reason the US retained its system has less to do with the units being so intuitive and more to do with having

Yet regimes all over Europe adapted it anyway. The reason the US retained its system has less to do with the units being so intuitive and more to do with having industrialized early enough that switching would have been expensive.

spookie 3y ago
The metric system came about around the same time as the U.S. Either way, that intuitive understanding of the imperial system may just come about due to one's growing up with it. I have the same (I assume), innate understanding of the various metric units, given that I was exposed to it all my life. It's easy for me to glance at something and know if it's as big as a centimeter, a couple, perhaps a decimeter or even a meter. The same goes for the volume of something. I think it has more to do with your education, and experience in life, than it's with... the arbitrary way someone came about with those units. Nothing against the imperial system, I understand how difficult it is to leave it now, and no-one could predict if the metric system were to take off at the time. I wish all of us would use only one though.
- emodendroket 3y ago
  It seems likely, yeah. Also, these customary units had all kinds of variations (technically they still do in countries using the UK-derived units though in practice the US ones are the ones people care about).
CapitalistCartr 3y ago
Western Europe was more industrialized than we were at the creation of the Metric System, yet they managed. The longer we waited, the more expensive it got. Now here we are, the last holdout.
- avar 3y ago
  > Western Europe was more > industrialized than we were[...] One reason for this is that weights and measures in Europe were less standardized at the time. While the US (mostly) used a consistent system, different countries, or even different cities and towns in Europe had incompatible systems when metric was introduced. > Now here we are, the last > holdout. Don't forget Liberia and Myanmar!
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
- emodendroket 3y ago
  Still, industrialization happened before serious metrification drives and that’s what caused the problem. This video discusses it. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1OeoBbjwEFg https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1OeoBbjwEFg In practice though it’s not as though metric is not used to a significant extent in some contexts even in the US. Your medications do not list the contents of their active ingredients in drams.
zzzoom 3y ago
I live in a country that uses the metric system. Water and gas pipe diameters are in inches. Nothing breaks because there aren't any competing standards.
- avar 3y ago
  What country is that? Here in The Netherlands there's at least 3 entirely different standards for household water and gas pipes (and I know Germany's much the same). There's BSP (imperial), but be careful, it's not the diameter that's in inches, it's the inner diameter. Then there's the common 15mm and 22mm copper water and gas pipes, and Alpex 16mm and 20mm.
  - zzzoom 3y ago
    Argentina. I'm pretty sure that gas installations wouldn't pass inspection with non-standard pipes. You could probably use whatever you want for water pipes.
    - avar 3y ago
      I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but some quick searching seems to suggest that it's just as much of mess in Argentina as here ;-) https://www.totaline.com.ar/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/17-Cat%C3%A1logo-Tuber%C3%ADa-de-Cobre-Termomec%C3%A1nica.pdf https://www.totaline.com.ar/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/17-Ca... My Spanish is rather bad, but I think this: > Los tubos son producidos según los estándares establecidos por la norma internacional ASTM B88 y B88M. Says that ASTM B88 and it's metric equivalent are accepted. As you'll see from the listed dimensions the latter is truly metric, while the former is imperial.
      - zzzoom 3y ago
        The regulations [1] list national standard NAG E-209 [2] for copper gas pipes, which is metric based on ASTM B88M. [1] https://www.enargas.gob.ar/secciones/normativa/pdf/normas-discusion/NAG-200.pdf https://www.enargas.gob.ar/secciones/normativa/pdf/normas-di... [2] https://www.enargas.gob.ar/secciones/normativa/pdf/normas-tecnicas/NAG-E209.pdf https://www.enargas.gob.ar/secciones/normativa/pdf/normas-te...
mardifoufs 3y ago
Europe adopting something does not mean it's good or intuitive. I like metric but that's just a non argument. It's just like saying the US manages to uses imperial just fine, so imperial is just fine too
- emodendroket 3y ago
  It is an argument against the idea that it’s an insane idea from socialists gone mad since conservative regimes found it equally useful.
- vhcr 3y ago
  "just fine", https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Climate_Orbiter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Climate_Orbiter

spookie 3y ago

The metric system came about around the same time as the U.S. Either way, that intuitive understanding of the imperial system may just come about due to one's growing up with it. I have the same (I assume), innate understanding of the various metric units, given that I was exposed to it all my life. It's easy for me to glance at something and know if it's as big as a centimeter, a couple, perhaps a decimeter or even a meter. The same goes for the volume of something. I think it has more to do with your education, and experience in life, than it's with... the arbitrary way someone came about with those units. Nothing against the imperial system, I understand how difficult it is to leave it now, and no-one could predict if the metric system were to take off at the time. I wish all of us would use only one though.

emodendroket 3y ago
It seems likely, yeah. Also, these customary units had all kinds of variations (technically they still do in countries using the UK-derived units though in practice the US ones are the ones people care about).

CapitalistCartr 3y ago

Western Europe was more industrialized than we were at the creation of the Metric System, yet they managed. The longer we waited, the more expensive it got. Now here we are, the last holdout.

avar 3y ago
> Western Europe was more > industrialized than we were[...] One reason for this is that weights and measures in Europe were less standardized at the time. While the US (mostly) used a consistent system, different countries, or even different cities and towns in Europe had incompatible systems when metric was introduced. > Now here we are, the last > holdout. Don't forget Liberia and Myanmar!
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
emodendroket 3y ago
Still, industrialization happened before serious metrification drives and that’s what caused the problem. This video discusses it. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1OeoBbjwEFg https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1OeoBbjwEFg In practice though it’s not as though metric is not used to a significant extent in some contexts even in the US. Your medications do not list the contents of their active ingredients in drams.

zzzoom 3y ago

I live in a country that uses the metric system. Water and gas pipe diameters are in inches. Nothing breaks because there aren't any competing standards.

avar 3y ago
What country is that? Here in The Netherlands there's at least 3 entirely different standards for household water and gas pipes (and I know Germany's much the same). There's BSP (imperial), but be careful, it's not the diameter that's in inches, it's the inner diameter. Then there's the common 15mm and 22mm copper water and gas pipes, and Alpex 16mm and 20mm.
- zzzoom 3y ago
  Argentina. I'm pretty sure that gas installations wouldn't pass inspection with non-standard pipes. You could probably use whatever you want for water pipes.
  - avar 3y ago
    I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but some quick searching seems to suggest that it's just as much of mess in Argentina as here ;-) https://www.totaline.com.ar/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/17-Cat%C3%A1logo-Tuber%C3%ADa-de-Cobre-Termomec%C3%A1nica.pdf https://www.totaline.com.ar/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/17-Ca... My Spanish is rather bad, but I think this: > Los tubos son producidos según los estándares establecidos por la norma internacional ASTM B88 y B88M. Says that ASTM B88 and it's metric equivalent are accepted. As you'll see from the listed dimensions the latter is truly metric, while the former is imperial.
    - zzzoom 3y ago
      The regulations [1] list national standard NAG E-209 [2] for copper gas pipes, which is metric based on ASTM B88M. [1] https://www.enargas.gob.ar/secciones/normativa/pdf/normas-discusion/NAG-200.pdf https://www.enargas.gob.ar/secciones/normativa/pdf/normas-di... [2] https://www.enargas.gob.ar/secciones/normativa/pdf/normas-tecnicas/NAG-E209.pdf https://www.enargas.gob.ar/secciones/normativa/pdf/normas-te...

mardifoufs 3y ago

Europe adopting something does not mean it's good or intuitive. I like metric but that's just a non argument. It's just like saying the US manages to uses imperial just fine, so imperial is just fine too

emodendroket 3y ago
It is an argument against the idea that it’s an insane idea from socialists gone mad since conservative regimes found it equally useful.
vhcr 3y ago
"just fine", https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Climate_Orbiter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Climate_Orbiter