Then, they should awaken. Why not go back to anatomical "standards?" I'll be a carpenter and build a house with dimensions based on arms, but I'll use the length of MY arm. To refer to a standard-related measuring device is a scientific approach.
Quoting James Jason Wentworth <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > Many people even in metric countries (cooks, carpenters, plumbers, etc.) > don't consider *all* measurement scientific. -- Jason > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Paul Trusten > To: U.S. Metric Association > Cc: U.S. Metric Association > Sent: Friday, April 20, 2007 8:25 PM > Subject: [USMA:38468] Re: Unexpected appearance of SI in US media > > > Ezra, I wish I could share your optimism in these two instances, but I > think that these examples you cited mean something else. > > The grieving woman was using "centimeters" as a superlative, not as a > descriptor. She would probably also say, "Gone in a nanosecond," borrowing > from the SI, but not embracing it. > > The CNN piece may have started out with the present consciousness of the > U.S. "man in the street" (inch-pound), as the media often does. But the > second half of the presentation may have been science-oriented, and I sense > that reporters use metric only to emphasize what they believe to be > "scientific" content. They have not adopted the perception that we USMA > members and metricationists have, that all measurement is scientific, and > should be dignified, wherever it occurs, with the use of the SI. > > Paul > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > This morning I heard on NPR a woman talking about her child's experience at > Virginia Tech during the shooting. She sounded like she was in her 30's or > 40's and said in a native American accent that if her daughter had been "only > centimeters" in a different spot, she would have been hit. > > Leaving aside the horrific incident she was describing for a moment (and I do > find it hard to do that), I can say that I found that to be an unexpected > sign that SI is making some in-roads in the general population. > > I also saw an article on CNN.com describing predictions about what would > happen by the end of the century if global warming continues and sea levels > continue to rise. The first half of the article used US Customary > exclusively, then switched to SI exclusively for the rest of the article. > Again, more signs that in-roads are being made with respect to SI usage. > > Ezra > > > > > > > -- > Paul Trusten, R.Ph. > Public Relations Director > U.S. Metric Association, Inc. > www.metric.org > 3609 Caldera Blvd., Apt. 122 > Midland TX 79707-2872 USA > +1(432)528-7724 > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > -- Paul Trusten, R.Ph. Public Relations Director U.S. Metric Association, Inc. Phone (432)528-7724 www.metric.org 3609 Caldera Boulevard, Apartment 122 Midland TX 79707-2872 USA mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.grandecom.net/~trusten
