Pounds And Ounces Vs Kilograms.

[Atheist]

Who here thinks that reverting to Imperial measurements is a good idea, other than as a way of asserting our Britishness? Would it help our international standing in the scientific and fiscal world? Or is it just a finger up to the foreigners?

[Deskdiary]

I wasn’t around when the money was £sd, and from I understand there was more than two hundred pennies to the pound. That just seems utterly alien to me. What the hell does 1 and 4 mean?

I was brought up thinking in metric, and other than miles and pints, it’s all I’ve ever known.

[davebro]

Metric is more convenient (many younger folks will know no other) but Imperial certainly developed my mental arithmetic.

[DTCwordfan]

were you at those games, TTT? London, wasn't it?

[Buenchico]

Metrication has nothing to do with the EU.

The Standards Commissioners recommended that "“That the time has now arrived when the law should provide and facilities be offered by the Government, for the introduction and use of metric weights and measures in the UK.” That was in 1869!

British military maps have used coordinates based upon metric units since 1919, with the Ordnance Survey following in 1936.

The Committee on Weights and Measures Legislation (a.k.a. the Hodgson Committee) concluded that conversion to metric units was 'inevitable' in 1951.

UK motorways have had markers set 100m apart since 1958.

The British Standards Institute published “Going metric – first stages” in 1967.

The Royal Society recommended that only SI units should be used for scientific purposes in 1968, with pharmaceutical standards (for the dispensing of medicines) falling into line with proposal the following year.

The UK Metrication Board came into existence in 1969.

The Commonwealth Games adopted the metric system for all events in 1970.

Decimal currency was introduced in 1971.

The White Paper on Metrication stated that metric units should become the primary system of measurement in the UK in 1972.

All of which happened BEFORE the UK joined the EEC!

[jno]

240 pennies to the pound - very easy to do sums if you have 24 fingers, though.

[davebro]

One shilling & 4 pence was about 7p in "new" money. In the 60s a pint of beer was 1 and 6 = 7.5 new pence.

[Jackdaw33]

1 and 4 means one shilling and fourpence, 16 old pennies.

[davebro]

^^^^ wages £8 per week!

[jno]

many younger folks will know no other

those children under 50, I think, davebro

[Theland]

And ha'pennies and farthings and florins and guineas?

[sunny-dave]

The problem with metric is that the basic units of weight and volume are just not what is needed for daily life.

A litre of beer (or anything) is far too much for a single glass - so you order in halves (demi whatever) or large numbers of ml.

Similarly a litre is far too small a unit for bulk purchases like petrol/oil - the numbers get silly far too quickly and there's no commonly used multiple unit

A kilo of anything foodlike is too much - whereas a gramme is too small - so you work in livres or whatever informal unit.

The imperial system just fits better - besides which it confuses the foreigners ...

[Theland]

I started work on £4/week.

[Theland]

''Hey mate! Gimme a lorra lorra dem tings der lad!''

[jno]

ordering half a litre of something has never worried me any more than ordering half a pound of something, dave. And I'd sooner have a litre bottle of wine than a pint bottle.

Of course, I appreciate that over the millennia some people's bladders have evolved to hold exactly a pint of bitter.

[Electrochem]

The majority of my working life was spent in science. My job would have been a nightmare without the metric system.

[KARL]

"Would it help our international standing ?"

To many/most foreign minds Brexit and the Covid debacle now define the image/standing of Britain. An official return to Imperial measure would fix that image even more firmly.

[davebro]

eggs are still better packed as 6x2 or 3x4 !!!!

[Canary42]

/// Would it help our international standing///

Wiki: "For measuring length, the U.S. customary system uses the inch, foot, yard, and mile, which are the only four customary length measurements in everyday use. Since July 1, 1959, these have been defined on the basis of 1 yard = 0.9144 meters except for some applications in surveying."

[DTCwordfan]

yes but their definition of a gallon is different ! 1 of ours = 1.20 of theirs and that causes confusion...

[woofgang]

yup.....I had a Suzuki Jimney manuy years ago and I didn't seem to be able to get the mileage out of a tank that I should have.....till I twigged that the manual was for the UK and the petrol tank was US gallons!