Only three countries

martinw-48
Community Member
Haven't adopted the metric system.
USA
Liberia
Burma
Burma is converting
Gerald Ford signed into legislation in 1975 metric conversion but it is voluntary
About time they joined the rest of the world
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Re: Only three countries

martinw-48
Community Member

Re: Only three countries

I guess as one of the biggest economies in the world, the US has not felt a pressing need to convert for the convenience of others.

 

If you look at Australia and UK, I think you'll find that most older people, and I don't mean decrepit old either, are perfectly familiar with terms such as feet and inches, who feel quite at home if told a baby weighs in at 7lb, who have a clear mental image of what a day of 90F feels like etc

 

So we're walking around, able to work reasonably comfortably in both systems.

But that's because we were forced to.

I read the article and how the people using the petrol station felt cheated as they couldn't convert. It reminds me of here. I remember that for 2 years, on the TV weather report each night after the news, the reporter would predict the temp for the next day-in both C & F.

Two years.

After that, it was reported in C only. I was fairly young at the time but I recall the rude awakening I felt because while it was reported in both, I had only really taken notice of the F. But we learnt to deal with it and built up our knowledge over time.

 

I doubt the young ones today can do it in reverse. 

 

Americans find it extremely hard, even when simple ball park conversion are explained to them. That's because they don't use them often enough to remember them. They don't have to.

They don't want to convert, it wouldn't be a popular move, we won't see it happen until they absolutely have to.

I'd say a lot of them would be proud to be different.Smiley Happy They are very patriotic you know, much more so than your average Australian.

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Re: Only three countries

UK may have converted for some of it but they still use miles NOT kms

 

Springy I had a giggle at your post. My 82 yr old neighbour still uses miles and will tell me she received so many points of rain. I dont know  what she uses for weights, length etc, not game to ask her ๐Ÿ™‚  She is a quite intelligent lady, she just refuses to change lol

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Re: Only three countries

I always use the imperial system when designing and constructing my art quilts, but when it comes to purchasing the fabrics, it has to be by metric measurement in Australia of course, but imperial for USA fabric.

 

It's become second nature to me to use both systems automatically all the time even when cooking .. I don't know why, but I would find it hard to only think in just one system, it has to be both thought equally .. Smiley Embarassed

 

 

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Re: Only three countries

jetho1680
Community Member

Some beaches are named in miles, like 7 or 14 mile beach, as are some creeks etc.

Car wheels are still measured in inches.

TVs are in mostly measured in inches.

I have a nephew named Miles, would be silly to call him 1.60934 kilometers.

Eggs should not be sold in a 12 pack because that is a dozen.

.

 

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Re: Only three countries

"I have a nephew named Miles, would be silly to call him 1.60934 kilometers"

 

laughing4.gif

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Re: Only three countries

martinw-48
Community Member
Yes wheels are in inches but only the internal diameter of tyres is in inches.
Sidewalls and width of tyres is in metric.
Aircraft refueling is now in metric worldwide I believe due to an aircraft crashing due to a mix up between US gallons and litres.
I can convert miles to kilometres in my head having a 1970 Falcon but chains, furlongs and that I have no idea.
I do remember the change from the teacher bashing me with the yard ruler and then the metre ruler.
I just love those old angry women for that
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Re: Only three countries

I go back that far I still use cubits. ๐Ÿ˜„
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Re: Only three countries


@myoclon1cjerk wrote:
I go back that far I still use cubits. ๐Ÿ˜„

So - how are you coming along with the Ark. lol

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