5 ms·
> In Delhi (45 degrees in summer) ... That's 113 degrees Fahrenheit for American readers. The rest of the world has wisely adopted more rational measurement un
by lutusp 12y ago
> In Delhi (45 degrees in summer) ...
That's 113 degrees Fahrenheit for American readers. The rest of the world has wisely adopted more rational measurement units. Even Canada, a stone's throw away from the U.S., uses the Metric system.
- mnw21cam 12y agoBoth temperature scales are (thankfully) rational. Some physicists have been dabbling in complex temperatures, but thankfully most of us don't need to know anything about them. Sorry, mathematician joke.
- Kurtz79 12y agoCelsius used two very reproducible tresholds (freezing and boiling points of water), associated them to two very easy to remember values (0 and 100), and defined his scale according to them. The way Farenheit got to his scale seems really less practical to me, from Wikipedia : "Fahrenheit proposed his temperature scale in 1724, basing it on three reference points of temperature.[9] In his initial scale (which is not the final Fahrenheit scale), the zero point is determined by placing the thermometer in brine: he used a mixture of ice, water, and ammonium chloride, a salt, at a 1÷1÷1 ratio. This is a frigorific mixture which stabilizes its temperature automatically: that stable temperature was defined as 0 °F (−17.78 °C). The second point, at 32 degrees, was a mixture of ice and water without the ammonium chloride at a 1÷1 ratio. The third point, 96 degrees, was approximately the human body temperature, then called "blood-heat".[12]"
- mnw21cam 12y agohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rational_number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rational_number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complex_number http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complex_number
- Kurtz79 12y agoIt was not a direct response to the "rational" bit.
- philh 12y ago> two very reproducible tresholds (freezing and boiling points of water) Reproducible if you happen to be near sea level.
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- mcguire 12y agoAnd have the appropriate "water".
- linuskendall 12y agoUnfortunately in India it's generally Fahrenheit as well, independence from the British didn't remove that piece of the imperial system (in length it's even more confusing where shorter measures feet and inches are preferred while for longer once m and km...).
- lake99 12y agoIndians generally use Fahrenheit only for body temperature... to know if we're running a fever. But off-hand, I'd have no idea what an air temperature of 113 degrees Fahrenheit would feel like. I understand 45C quite easily. Surely you've seen weather reports and forecasts in Indian newspapers and on Indian TV. Did you ever see them use Fahrenheit? For distances, a person's height is measured in feet and inches, tailors prefer to use inches for their dimensions, plots of land are often measured in feet. But everything else is metric. (Listen to the local farmer speak, in your own vimeo video link.) Speedometer, odometer, fuel, grocery, produce, etc. all use the metric system. To say nothing of my entirely-metric work in engineering.
- linuskendall 12y agoYes, you're absolutely right and most Indians seem far more literate in converting between the two than I ever would be. My generalization was way too broad and wrong - thanks for pointing out the specific cases. It seems like, as with the examples you give, that certain systems are used for certain purposes which was always fascinating to me come from outside. In construction, in rural areas I've found it varying between different parts of the country whether metric or imperial is preferred.