5 ms·

> As for climates, there are places that see very little difference in temperature, and definitely not the 'nice 0 – 100' range that Americans claim. That's no

> As for climates, there are places that see very little difference in temperature, and definitely not the 'nice 0 – 100' range that Americans claim. That's not really the point. 0° F: It's cold outside. 100° F: It's hot outside. 0° C: It's cold outside but not really that cold. 100° C: Dead. 0 K: Dead. 100 K: Dead. These things are the case for humans regardless of whether you live in a place that actually gets cold or hot outside.

delta_p_delta_x 1y ago
> 0° C: It's cold outside but not really that cold. > These things are the case for humans Who says so? 0 °C is very cold by many people's standards. About half the human population lives within the tropics. In fact I'd like to see Americans walk around in the UK wearing just a T-shirt and bermudas when it's barely above freezing, and insist 'it's not really that cold, it's only 32 °F'.
- ghaff 1y ago
  Maybe this is the perspective of someone who has spent a lot of time in the northern US, but it's cold but really not that cold. I might even run outside briefly in bare feet in the snow. But, yes, get to 0 degrees F and you're in bitter cold territory although, of course it gets colder in the northern Midwest/mountains/etc. And my contractor has been in shorts and a T in 40s-ish weather this week. The point is that F degrees seems a pretty human scale that doesn't usually need a lot of decimals or minus signs for routine purposes. That it doesn't correspond to a couple of water transitions at standard pressure/temperature is sort of irrelevant. Of course, I and many other people are perfectly happy with using Celsius/Kelvin degrees for various purposes.
  - magicalhippo 1y ago
    The minus sign is quite practical though. When winter is coming, if it's 3 deg C outside, I typically don't need to worry about ice. If it's -3 deg C outside, I need to worry about ice. When winter is waning, if it's been icy and it's -3 deg C outside, I typically don't need to worry about water on top of the ice. If it's 3 deg C outside, I typically do need to worry about water on top of the ice making it super slippery.
- AnthonyMouse 1y ago
  Again, it's not about where you live. 0°F is approximately the temperature at which the risk of frostbite becomes significant. 100°F is approximately the temperature at which the risk of heat-related illnesses becomes significant. Temperatures in between are far less hazardous to humans, even if the numbers near the edges are starting to get uncomfortable.
stephen_g 1y ago
It literally doesn’t matter at all what’s 0 and 100 though. Honestly if you’re familiar with one system, the scale feels intuitive to you, and if you’re familiar with the other then the other one does. Like people tell me that the US customary system is “more human scale and intuitive” but I literally cannot picture, say, 15 inches or ten feet - it just means nothing to me unless I mentally convert to centimetres or meters. So much of these arguments boil down to “I grew up with this system so I can intuitively use it, so it must be superior”
- delta_p_delta_x 1y ago
  > I grew up with this system so I can intuitively use it, so it must be superior This is essentially every American argument for USC or Imperial units. In fact, there are actually legitimate reasons why some legacy units are superior—for instance the duodecimal or sexagesimal systems which have many more factors than the decimal. But every other argument is a variation of 'it's better because I know it better'.
mahkeiro 1y ago
0°C tells you the very practical information that it's freezing outside and that you must be careful, or you can expect snow. For F° you have to know the value by heart.
- Mountain_Skies 1y ago
  Zero is just as arbitrary as 32 but ever so slightly easier to remember. Anyone for whom that slight difference in remembering is actually a real impediment likely has other issues that require them to be under the care of others so it ceases to be relevant to them. At the other end, 100 vs 212 is of no practical use for anyone. Outside of the laboratory and manufacturing, people just boil water without thinking about the number associated with it. And in those settings, many other variables are tracked so the difference is of near zero consequence.
  - soco 1y ago
    So to put it short: if I know what I'm talking about I'll use K, and if I have no idea it doesn't matter anyway.
  - Y_Y 1y ago
    Please sir/madam, if you can, spare a thought for us lost souls who spend most of their finite lives in the laboratory and/or manufacturing.
- baq 1y ago
  Even that isn’t quite true because you can get ice on the road or the sidewalk when air at 2m is ~3C.
fch42 1y ago
250K: quite cold. 300K: beach weather. 350K: you're distilling your own moonshine right ? (worksforme)
- Y_Y 1y ago
  In case any of you are distilling your own moonshine, please be aware that at 350 kelvins (77 Celsius) you're likely to be getting methanol[0]. You should have the antivenom (ethyl alcohol, like vodka) on hand just in case. Home distilling is great fun, and sometimes it's even legal, but please have an accurate thermometer and try not to poison yourself and others unless absolutely necessary. (These temperate levels are also humidity and altitide/pressure dependent, if your still is in the high Appalachies then just listen to your heart.) [0] https://diydistilling.com/distillation-temperatures/ https://diydistilling.com/distillation-temperatures/
  - fch42 1y ago
    Amen to that. I wasn't trying to encourage anyone to try their hand on distilling without learning more about it. Only highlighting that one can "humanly relate" to Kelvin-based temperatures. If one so wishes. And that "reference points" there needn't be any more "arbitrary" than for °F/°C.

delta_p_delta_x 1y ago

> 0° C: It's cold outside but not really that cold. > These things are the case for humans Who says so? 0 °C is very cold by many people's standards. About half the human population lives within the tropics. In fact I'd like to see Americans walk around in the UK wearing just a T-shirt and bermudas when it's barely above freezing, and insist 'it's not really that cold, it's only 32 °F'.

ghaff 1y ago
Maybe this is the perspective of someone who has spent a lot of time in the northern US, but it's cold but really not that cold. I might even run outside briefly in bare feet in the snow. But, yes, get to 0 degrees F and you're in bitter cold territory although, of course it gets colder in the northern Midwest/mountains/etc. And my contractor has been in shorts and a T in 40s-ish weather this week. The point is that F degrees seems a pretty human scale that doesn't usually need a lot of decimals or minus signs for routine purposes. That it doesn't correspond to a couple of water transitions at standard pressure/temperature is sort of irrelevant. Of course, I and many other people are perfectly happy with using Celsius/Kelvin degrees for various purposes.
- magicalhippo 1y ago
  The minus sign is quite practical though. When winter is coming, if it's 3 deg C outside, I typically don't need to worry about ice. If it's -3 deg C outside, I need to worry about ice. When winter is waning, if it's been icy and it's -3 deg C outside, I typically don't need to worry about water on top of the ice. If it's 3 deg C outside, I typically do need to worry about water on top of the ice making it super slippery.
AnthonyMouse 1y ago
Again, it's not about where you live. 0°F is approximately the temperature at which the risk of frostbite becomes significant. 100°F is approximately the temperature at which the risk of heat-related illnesses becomes significant. Temperatures in between are far less hazardous to humans, even if the numbers near the edges are starting to get uncomfortable.

stephen_g 1y ago

It literally doesn’t matter at all what’s 0 and 100 though. Honestly if you’re familiar with one system, the scale feels intuitive to you, and if you’re familiar with the other then the other one does. Like people tell me that the US customary system is “more human scale and intuitive” but I literally cannot picture, say, 15 inches or ten feet - it just means nothing to me unless I mentally convert to centimetres or meters. So much of these arguments boil down to “I grew up with this system so I can intuitively use it, so it must be superior”

delta_p_delta_x 1y ago
> I grew up with this system so I can intuitively use it, so it must be superior This is essentially every American argument for USC or Imperial units. In fact, there are actually legitimate reasons why some legacy units are superior—for instance the duodecimal or sexagesimal systems which have many more factors than the decimal. But every other argument is a variation of 'it's better because I know it better'.

mahkeiro 1y ago

0°C tells you the very practical information that it's freezing outside and that you must be careful, or you can expect snow. For F° you have to know the value by heart.

Mountain_Skies 1y ago
Zero is just as arbitrary as 32 but ever so slightly easier to remember. Anyone for whom that slight difference in remembering is actually a real impediment likely has other issues that require them to be under the care of others so it ceases to be relevant to them. At the other end, 100 vs 212 is of no practical use for anyone. Outside of the laboratory and manufacturing, people just boil water without thinking about the number associated with it. And in those settings, many other variables are tracked so the difference is of near zero consequence.
- soco 1y ago
  So to put it short: if I know what I'm talking about I'll use K, and if I have no idea it doesn't matter anyway.
- Y_Y 1y ago
  Please sir/madam, if you can, spare a thought for us lost souls who spend most of their finite lives in the laboratory and/or manufacturing.
baq 1y ago
Even that isn’t quite true because you can get ice on the road or the sidewalk when air at 2m is ~3C.

fch42 1y ago

250K: quite cold. 300K: beach weather. 350K: you're distilling your own moonshine right ? (worksforme)

Y_Y 1y ago
In case any of you are distilling your own moonshine, please be aware that at 350 kelvins (77 Celsius) you're likely to be getting methanol[0]. You should have the antivenom (ethyl alcohol, like vodka) on hand just in case. Home distilling is great fun, and sometimes it's even legal, but please have an accurate thermometer and try not to poison yourself and others unless absolutely necessary. (These temperate levels are also humidity and altitide/pressure dependent, if your still is in the high Appalachies then just listen to your heart.) [0] https://diydistilling.com/distillation-temperatures/ https://diydistilling.com/distillation-temperatures/
- fch42 1y ago
  Amen to that. I wasn't trying to encourage anyone to try their hand on distilling without learning more about it. Only highlighting that one can "humanly relate" to Kelvin-based temperatures. If one so wishes. And that "reference points" there needn't be any more "arbitrary" than for °F/°C.