I don't think we need to CONVERT to metric at all.

I know a guy, he's a helo pilot in the marines, he's also a major computer geek. He's been to Iraq a zillion times....

We were chatting about stuff, and he mentioned that he had to walk 12 kilometers in the desert in iraq, and it was miserable - I asked him, "How far is that?" and he said, "I just told you, 12 kilometers. Don't convert, just learn how long a kilometer is, and leave it at that."

That's when I realized that it's CONVERTING to metric that's the problem - so don't. Some things are metric, some aren't. That's OK.

I already have a few "everyday" metric moments:

9MM - I know that one!
5.56MM too!

1 Liter of Soda, 1/2 Liter of Wine

The bolt on the bar of my chainsaw: 12mm

I admit that distance is still not so strong for me. I really don't "know" what a kilometer feels like to walk, compared to a mile.

I would prefer measurements in milimeters, especially since I'm currently remodeling a bathroom....

Let's see, the 2x4 is nominally 3-1/2" but these are actually 3-7/16" deep, the wallboard is 1/2" and then a 1/4" mortar allowance, and a 3/16" thick, tile, the valve needs 11/16" projection from the finished surface, and sets back from the edge 2x4 1-5/16", so what time is it in London at noon?

Do we really need a faucet for this tub?

1 Kilometre is near enough about 5 Furlongs. (just over by about a 3 Roman Paces)




1 pint (Imperial) of water is 0.568 litres and the density of pure water at 4C is 1 kg/litre then 1 pint of water weighs 0.568Kg

1 pound is actually 0.454 kg, so there is a considerable error of 0.114kg = 1/4 lb approx error or nearly 25%

1 Pint (US) = 473.176475 ml = 0.473 kg compared to 0.454 Kg.

1 Gallon (Imperial) = 4.546 litres = 4.546 kg. 8lbs = 3.632 Kg (again a considerable error)

1 Gallon (US) = 3.785 litres = 3.785 kg. 8lbs = 3.632 Kg (much nearer when using US rather than Imperial measurements)

It can sometimes get confusing as Imperial measurements are the same for US when it comes to weight measurements but different when volumes of liquids are measured.

I think it's closer to 5 cables than 5 furlongs.

There are simply too many rarely used units of distance.

I once had a chemistry teacher that imposed alternative measurement systems. One use for velocity was "furlongs per fortnight". "Flyweight" and "stone" were two of the weight standards.

Being forced to use alternative systems helped point out that measurements and science works in any consistently applied measurement system. Some are systems are less bulky than others but they all work.

"...I really don't "know" what a kilometer feels like to walk, compared to a mile..."

It's a lot easier...

I like that! Furlongs/fortnight.

Another reason I didn't like the units in my zillions of science classes were too many blasted fractions in the darn definitions of units! Yeah, I admit that foot-pounds and horsepower don't make much sense if you really try to break them down, but Joules, kPa, Torr and kg/m/sec don't help either. Like, well, shouldn't the last one really be (kgxsec)/m? The 'per' really threw me off for a year, and that's just to define what the unit is trying to measure!

Anyway, a kilometer feels like half a mile, ish. I'm actually OK with km simply because I was in cross country in high school. A 5km race is 3.1 miles. Which was too long, mainly cuz I was a track boy that did XC only to stay in shape off season.

Edit: Come to think of it, I have friends in the UK that use "stone" to refer to the weight of a person.

This thread makes my brain ache.

Reminds me of my friend who used to run marathons. One time she ran past a runner who was dragging his socks and wiped out mentally. He asked her much further it was, her reply was 10 km. The guy almost tainted when he heard this as in his worn out state he did not know that 10 km was only about 6 miles. Once she explained to him it was only six miles, he picked up the pace and finished in a good time...

Welcome to my world...

How about hands for measuring the height of a horse?