The other day I bought a four-pack of V8 V-Fusion Sparkling Vegetable and
Fruit Drink cans. The contents were labeled as "8.4 fl. oz. (248 ml)."
Now, 8.4 U.S. fluid ounces converts to 248.4 millitres. 250 millilitres
converts to 8.45 fluid ounces.
My guess is that the content is a rational 250 millilitres, which was
converted to 8.4 fluid ounces; then at some point somebody converted 8.4
fluid ounces back to 248 millilitres. Becuase one significant digit was
missing in the conversion, the result ended up losing 2 millilitres.
It seems to me that I have read in "Metric Today" of this kind of thing
happening before. It is just another example of the literalist ignorance
that people fall into, the same ignorance that leads them to accept the
results from a digital calculator, even when the result makes no sense, or
to accept a nonsense language "translation" that comes out of a computer
"translation" program.
I wonder why these companies don't get a check from a metric consultant
before doing these bonehead "conversions" and imprinting millions of cans,
the way movie producers get consultants to make sure that words and
costumes correspond to historic periods (but they often make mistakes!).
Martin Morrison
Metric Today's Metric Training & Education Columnist
