U.S. Federal contracts require metric units (but usually not standard
metric sizes) . The U.S. populace still thinks in English customary
units. For example, highway construction is specified in metric units;
highway speeds are in customary units.
U.S. customary units have long been legally defined in terms of metric
units. For example, the inch is now defined as 25.40000 mm, formerly
100/3937 metre.
The European Union has deferred its metric-only labeling requirement until
31 December 2009.
http://www.ansi.org/public/news/1998feb/eulbl_11.html
See the following for a 1998 discussion of metric fasteners:
http://www.manufacturing.net/magazine/id/archives/1998/ind0301.98/fastners/c
utting.htm
List of historical definitions of the metre
http://lamar.colostate.edu/~hillger/meter.htm
A news article in Mother Jones Magazine on the U.S. Metric Program office
http://bsd.mojones.com/mother_jones/JF99/zengerle.html
U. S. Code on metric units
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/15/ch6.html#PC6
U.S. Code on time, weights and measures
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/15/ch6.html
NIST Metric Links
http://ts.nist.gov/ts/htdocs/200/202/mpo_reso.htm
U. S. General Services Administration's Metric Design Guide
(Interesting details of hard and soft conversion)
http://www.gsa.gov/pbs/pc/tc_files/stds/metricgd.pdf
Gordon
At 03:43 PM 2/13/00 +0000, Mr. D. Hunt wrote:
What exactly is the current situation, in the UNITED STATES, re. 'metric'
measurements ? - as I was led to believe it is the LEGAL standard there !
Gordon Uber [EMAIL PROTECTED] San Diego, California USA
Webmaster: Clocks and Time: http://www.ubr.com/clocks
