2002-03-13 Wrong! Most people in the US are confused by compass directions. You have to tell them in left/right terms. If I give directions using compass directions (North, South, East or West), I'm always asked whether a left turn, or a right turn is required. Not that everyone is familiar with their left and right. and, when I ask for directions, I am never given compass directions. Always straight, right or left.
John ----- Original Message ----- From: "cellular qwerty" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Wednesday, 2002-03-13 10:41 Subject: [USMA:18730] Re: Euro Driving License > --- M R <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >The greater use of icons appears to be a > >European cultural thing. > >America often uses words where Europe has icons. > >This is apparent in road signs. > > > >Then what about the directions (North, south, etc) > >in roads, do they use any icons for this. > > No. Unfortunately. > > There are no European standard words, each language > has its own. Word translations can be done at: > http://translation.langenberg.com/ > > The use of compass direction for navigation is another > cultural/environmental difference between the US and > Europe. Compass direction is common on US road signs > and people think in these terms. The US was fortunate > enough in having land to create roads quite recently > in a rational manner. The US urban grid is great for > easy navigation. People will say 'head north' and > 'take 95 west'. There is widespread knowledge of > compass direction in the US that is reinforced by the > road system. > > Forget all that when you visit Europe. Many European > roads are centuries old and are too wiggly for compass > directions to make sense. Central urban areas are > often medieval in layout and a compass is useless for > navigation, you might as well try to label spaghetti > with compass directions. With a few exceptions, > European road signs do not mention it and people do > not generally think in compass directions when navigating. > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Try FREE Yahoo! Mail - the world's greatest free email! > http://mail.yahoo.com/ >
