John Wright Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 51 minutes ago, Passing Time said: We were advised in Germany to halve the total then quarter one half. add together and hey presto MPH. half of 60 kmh = 30 quarter of 30 = 7.5 add the two together = 37.5mph Halving, then quartering the half, then adding the half and quartered half together is a long way of doing 5/8. 80kph = 50mph, so 40 = 25, 20 = 12.5. Roughly 110 = 70 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manxman1980 Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 2 hours ago, John Wright said: Halving, then quartering the half, then adding the half and quartered half together is a long way of doing 5/8. 80kph = 50mph, so 40 = 25, 20 = 12.5. Roughly 110 = 70 So let's just use metric so everyone understands! Even the imperial system used in the US is not consistent with the UK variety. Why does BJ and his crony party want to make life so much more difficult. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Wright Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 1 hour ago, manxman1980 said: So let's just use metric so everyone understands! Even the imperial system used in the US is not consistent with the UK variety. Why does BJ and his crony party want to make life so much more difficult. They don’t use imperial in the US. Agree. Ireland converted to metric ages ago. Speeds etc are in kph. Distances in km. Bojo at 17stone 7lbs or 111kg is still an idiot. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Wright Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 On 5/31/2022 at 10:10 AM, The Voice of Reason said: The UK Government had an obligation to implement the 1971 EU directive on weights and measures. Certain exceptions were allowed (pints of beer etc) 22 hours ago, manxman1980 said: EU Directive in 1971? Oh dear... Council Directive 80/181/EEC of 20 December 1979 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to units of measurement and on the repeal of Directive 71/354/EEC. so quite right, not an EU, but an EEC, Directive, one that’s been replaced and updated. Even although all EU member states ( apart from UK & IRL ) had adopted the metric system fully prior to accession there were local national idiosyncrasies. So, in Italian markets, lots of things were sold by the letto ( cooked meat, mushrooms, cheese ) and there were traditional measures of grain, fish, beer, wine etc. it made price comparison across borders difficult. Spain had, and still has, canya, or caña, for beer. A bit less than half a pint, standardised to 300ml. Or pinta, about a pint standardised to 600ml. Unusual to see it sold by litre or half litre. Germany serves in steins, standardised around litres or half litres. Bit like British crans, bushels, pecks, gill, chains, quarters. A letto was like a quarter, approximately 4oz/100gm. Wine came in 70cl or 75cl bottles, now standardised at 75cl. That’s why the 1971 EEC Directive was brought in. That being said last time I was in a rural Italian market I saw salami and cheese price marked per letto ( with the kg or 100gm price more prominent ). I don’t understand the obsession with imperial measure. I’m old enough to have been taught imperial, but I can conceptualise in metric and imperial, although, like Declan, I’m likely to use feet, yards and miles, and pints in casual conversation. Traditional measures survive, in name, side by side. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Wright Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 On 5/31/2022 at 1:52 AM, Declan said: Older than that mate. I'd say any Gen X-er, so born after 1965, will have only learned metric at school. The problem was all the adults around us spoke in Imperial. So if I have to measure something I'll use metric,but I have a secondary fuzzy set of measurements for abstract stuff. "It's about a mile ...", "It's a few feet that way", "I need to lose a stone", "I'd like a quarter ounce please" but I can never remember how many ounces make a stone, or yards make up a mile. I do know I mile is about 1600 metres though. Quarter ounce or quarter pound? 6.25gm or 100gm? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Declan Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 47 minutes ago, John Wright said: Quarter ounce or quarter pound? 6.25gm or 100gm? Depends what I was buying! To be honest the point I was making is a little different than the one you and PK seem to have taken. I have little conceptual notion in my minds eye for kmph, grams, litres etc but do for mph, pounds, pints etc. But if I had to measure something I'd use metric, because I know how many cms are in a metre, whilst I can never remember how many ounces are in a pound. So I can picture how tall a 6ft man is, but for a 2 metres I have to calculate as 6 2/3 school rulers to visualise him. It's like imperial is a folk memory like a fairy tale or folk song. Your version of a pint or a mile might be different from mine. But a metre is constant. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Sausages Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 2 hours ago, Declan said: . So I can picture how tall a 6ft man is, but for a 2 metres I have to calculate as 6 2/3 school rulers to visualise him. 2m is an average door. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Voice of Reason Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 5 hours ago, manxman1980 said: So let's just use metric so everyone understands! I think the phrase you are looking for is “dumbing down” 😄 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Declan Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 1 hour ago, The Voice of Reason said: I think the phrase you are looking for is “dumbing down” 😄 Buying the right amount of things is not meant to be intellectually rigorous. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manxman1980 Posted June 2, 2022 Share Posted June 2, 2022 10 hours ago, The Voice of Reason said: I think the phrase you are looking for is “dumbing down” 😄 So are you against anything that makes like easier? Do you fancy reverting to Guineas, Sovereigns, pounds, shillings, pence etc because you think it's a good intellectual exercise? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P.K. Posted June 2, 2022 Share Posted June 2, 2022 14 hours ago, Declan said: Depends what I was buying! To be honest the point I was making is a little different than the one you and PK seem to have taken. If you're driving abroad the 6/10 rule makes it very easy to instantly figure out what the speed limit is ie 50kph is 5x6 = 30mph, 80kph is 8x6 = 48mph and so on. Knowing it's just a smidge under means you're confident that you're ok. Fine for me and everyone I used to work with... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Voice of Reason Posted June 2, 2022 Share Posted June 2, 2022 (edited) 47 minutes ago, P.K. said: If you're driving abroad the 6/10 rule makes it very easy to instantly figure out what the speed limit is ie 50kph is 5x6 = 30mph, 80kph is 8x6 = 48mph and so on. Knowing it's just a smidge under means you're confident that you're ok. Fine for me and everyone I used to work with... Isn’t this all academic? For many years now speedometers have shown speeds in miles and kilometres per hour. So if you’re driving in a kilometre / ph jurisdiction just use that bit of the speedometer to make sure you stay within the speed limit. Edited June 2, 2022 by The Voice of Reason 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Wright Posted June 2, 2022 Share Posted June 2, 2022 @The Voice of Reason you’re obviously looking back through the rose tints. Lets hope imperialisation goes the whole hog(shead) and we get grains back. Don’t 20 grains equal a scruple? We've been missing scruples for too long. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Voice of Reason Posted June 2, 2022 Share Posted June 2, 2022 (edited) 3 hours ago, John Wright said: @The Voice of Reason you’re obviously looking back through the rose tints. Lets hope imperialisation goes the whole hog(shead) and we get grains back. Don’t 20 grains equal a scruple? We've been missing scruples for too long. Yes indeed John twenty grains do equal a scruple. Should be common knowledge just like the legal doctrine of stare decisis 😀 Edited June 2, 2022 by The Voice of Reason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Voice of Reason Posted June 2, 2022 Share Posted June 2, 2022 I am by no means a monarchist but over the years my republican views have softened somewhat, for which I make no apology. Watching all the Jubilee stuff it’s great to see that amongst the Union flags there are none of the EU blue and yellow flags which were used to try and hijack another uniquely British institution, the Last Night of the Proms. Whatever you think of such an occasion, and I’m not a great fan, it does celebrate Britishness not Europeanness. Why would you wave the EU colours makes no sense. The EU flag (in so much as it has any validity)on that night has no more place than say the Syrian flag ( for JW’s benefit) Maybe finally the Brexit penny has dropped for the Remainers and they have finally accepted the will of the people of the UK. Well let’s hope so and we don’t have any more of their nonsense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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