20. Today, the only countries that do not use the metric system are the U.S. and the trend-setting nations of Liberia and Burma.
THE
MEASURE FOR MEASURE
METRIC SYSTEM by Janet Spencer
• In 1975 the United States passed the Metric Conversion Act, a bold move by Congress to gradually transition America's units of measurement from feet and pounds to meters and kilograms. Since the U.S. is one of only three countries on the planet using the Imperial System of Measurement, the radical new legislation was designed to bring the US up to speed with the rest of the world. • So why hasn't it changed? The answer is simple; the law was completely voluntary. It meant that anyone who didn't want the hassle and confusion of transitioning from the standard measurements of feet, pounds and gallons over to metrics, didn't actually have to. And since that represented the vast majority of the American public and the US business industry, the metrics movement never took off. • Whether you feel that's a good thing or a bad thing, Tidbits thought it would at least be interesting to look at the metric system to see how it works and what the benefits of using it might be -- and leave it up to you to decide.
• The metric system was invented in France in 1799. A meter was defined as one ten-millionth of the length of an imaginary line from the North Pole to the Equator as it passes through Paris (39.37 inches). Of course you're likely familiar with these elementary facts already, but we'll mention them anyway: It has also been defined as 1,650,763.73 wavelengths of the orange-red light from the isotope Krypton 86, as measured in a vacuum. Today one meter is more accurately measured as the distance travelled by light in a vacuum during 1/299,792,548 of a second.
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your Tidbits representative immediately with changes or corrections. email: valleybits@msn.com
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INCH BY INCH
SYSTEM SIMPLICITY
• A decimeter is 1/10th of a meter. A cubic ADVERTISING PROOF decimeter equals one liter. A liter of water • The Greek word “metron,” from which we get weighs 1,000 grams. With metrics, if you know meter and metric, “a measure.” is MON., APRIL 5Gram5:00 Final Changes DUE:means p.m.. big an object is, you can find out what its FrenchDouble for “weight.” The Number(s) metric system is the Priceshow view carefully. check: Phone Spelling Hours weight is just by moving the decimal point. only system deliberately designed to be easy tact your Tidbits representative immediately with changes or corrections. to learn and simple to use. No other system e: 760-320-0997 email: valleybits@msn.com Fax: 760-320-1630 HOW THE SYSTEM WORKS of measurement links units of length, volume, • Arguing for the adoption of the metric system, and mass as the metric system does. The metric Alexander Graham Bell gave Congress an has seven base units that account for all Glossysystem - Women’s Boutique Our Imperial system has over 1/8 pg.measurements. BW 13x April 11, 2021 Vol. 17 - No. 16
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imaginary problem: You have a tank containing 123,456,789 cubic inches of water. You want to know the weight and volume of the water. First you must go to the library to find out how many cubic inches of water are in a gallon and how much a gallon of water weighs. Then you must complete difficult calculations. But if the tank contains 123,456,789 cubic centimeters of water, you need only to move the decimal point over to find out that it holds 123,456.789 liters and that it weighs 123,456.789 kilograms. Congress wasn't convinced enough to pass it.
• The Army, and Marines use metrics. So does NASA. The Olympics have been metric since they began in 1896. The first country in the Western Hemisphere to adopt metrics • The aforementioned Metric Conversion Act of was Colombia, which explains why cocaine 1975 actually wasn't the first time the U.S. tried is purchased in grams and kilograms. Your to switch over to the metric system. In 1866, ADVERTISING electricity is measured in metric PROOF kilowatt hours, Congress passed a law that said Americans and you buy skis in centimeters. Your medication MON., JAN. 13 5:00 could use the metric system if they liked.Final It didn'tChanges DUE: is dispensed in milligrams, the power of your catch on then, either. Then in Please 1900, they were review carefully. Double check: Phone Number(s) Spelling P vehicle is shown in cubic centimeters, and it's once again close to adopting the metric system, a safe bet your auto mechanic with keeps a set of Contact your Tidbits representative immediately changes or corr but the influentual machinist’s lobby vigorously metric tools handy in his shop. Office: 760-320-0997 email: valleybits@msn.com Fax: 760 opposed it. They painted a frightening picture of complete national chaos if the metric system • But it's still pretty clear that we Americans prefer to measure sugar by the teaspoon, buy was adopted. All factories would have to close! steak by the ounce, and potatoes by the pound. Property deeds would be invalidated! All bottles, We could probably adjust to a four liter container bushels, and boxes would have to be discarded! ADVERTISING PROOF Carlit's Moore Locksmithing of milk, but so easy to think of it in quarts Grocery stores would have to shut down! The Final Changes DUE: 5:00 p.m.. Business • Number(s) BW industry • 26x disc. gallons. DoesCard dairy really have Please reviewand carefully. Double check: our Phone Spelling Prices Hours economy would collapse! None of this was January 19, 2020 Vol. 16 No. 4 to worry about international markets? And it Contact your Tidbits representative immediately with changes or corrections. true, of course, but the alarmed citizenry was Office: 760-320-0997 email: valleybits@msn.com Fax: 760-320-1630 doesn't look like we'll be moving away from outraged, and our Imperial measurement system acres as units of real estate anytime soon. stubbornly remains intact today.
METRICS HISTORY
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