On Friday 03 January 2003 09:30, Jimmy Wales wrote:
Yes, I forgot the ;-). I don't really think that they'll be switching back.
But I do think that the United States will not be changing anytime in the next 50 years, at least. When I was a child, we were taught both systems, and we were told that the U.S. would be switching within a few years to metric. But it didn't "stick".
And I do think that the metric system is inferior to the English system for the sorts of measurements that ordinary people make all the time. It has the advantage of simplicity, to be sure. But the quirks of the English system are there for good reasons.
The foot, for example, is evenly divisible into inches by 2, 3, and 4. That sort of division comes up all the time in carpentry.
The acre is some weird number of square feet. It's not even square. I draw lots and wonder when they're going to change. Of course all the easements are currently round numbers of feet, but for the lengths that are 130*sin(rodbo'e)-66*cos(daidza), it doesn't matter what unit you measure them in, they'll be neither round nor square.
If the people lead, will the liters follow?
phma