Imperial or Metric?

[1. Luftballon]

I'd rather use 6 as a base, smaller and just as divisible.

but it's not as if imperial units are consistent in using anything in particular anyway, so.

Actually, I think the only reason we work in base-10 is because teaching children even simple math like counting in different bases would be torturous as the overwhelming majority of children that age have ten fingers.

fun fact: 10 fingers means 11 possible configurations. zero exists, you know.

(five fingers means SIX SIX SIX IS AWESOME GO SIX)

 

[Storm Earth and Fire]

I use US Customary, which for those not in the know, are slightly different from Imperial, though not different enough to cause major problems. The only conversion I remember is 1 US gallon being .8 Imperial gallons.

I have a rough idea of what I am doing in Metric. I remember that one mile is somewhere around 1.6 kilometers. I know roughly how much a liter is and all that. However, it's not very fun to use a system nobody I know uses.

 

[Phantom]

Imperial. I grew up using it and as hard as I could try I wouldn't be able to change, besides it'd confuse everyone else.

 

[Superbird]

1 inch = 2.5 centimeters
12 inches = 1 foot.
1 foot = 30 centimeters
1 yard = 3 feet
1 yard = 90 centimeters
1 meter = 1.111 yards
5280 feet = 1760 yards = 1 mile
1 mile = 1.6 kilometers

...And that's pretty much all I know of conversion from Imperial to Metric. Hopefully that helps...

Now back on-topic, I use Imperial/US Standard so much, but Metric makes SO MUCH MORE SENSE and I wish the US would actually use that instead.

 

[bulbasaur]

fun fact: 10 fingers means 11 possible configurations. zero exists, you know.

(five fingers means SIX SIX SIX IS AWESOME GO SIX)

Hmm... let's say you start counting in base-11, with "A" representing the additional number: RH 1,2,3,4,5 LH 6,7,8,9,A RH 10,11,12,13,14 LH 15,16,17,18,19 RH 1A,20,21,22,23 LH 24,25,26,27,28

It falls apart quickly.

 

[Mad MOAI]

I live in the U.S., so I'm more familiar with imperial but I think metric makes more sense. I use metric for most things, like for example when I write I describe the distance between two objects in meters, and I prefer to describe my own dimensions in the metric system. There are a few things I use imperial for, but I can't remember what right now.

 

[Adriane]

Mostly metric. Trying to use metric measurements whenever possible. Bit difficult in the US, though.

 

[Jason-Kun]

I use whichever one it is that the US specializes in.

 

[Blastoise Fortooate]

I am of course a dumb American, so I use imperial. Metric is a million times easier and makes a shitton more sense, however.

Seriously, this. I wish I knew exactly how much a meter was beyond 'about a yard'. And centimeters are 'about half an inch' for me. It's annoying but I can't very well go around talking in metric to everyone, since they would be understandably confused.

 

[opaltiger]

Wait, what? I knew the US preferred Imperial units, but is it really so bad that people wouldn't understand centimetres?

 

[Blastoise Fortooate]

In elementary school they say 'it's half an inch' and move on, in my experience. :/

I mean, I know that there's a hundred centimeters to a meter intelectually, but I just can't picture it like I can with inches and feet and yard and miles.

 

[Storm Earth and Fire]

Seriously, this. I wish I knew exactly how much a meter was beyond 'about a yard'.

One meter is 39 inches, give or take a few miniscule numbers. So three inches longer than a yard.

 

[Littlestream]

Both. I prefer to measure things in Metric, but I can only seem to remember my height (and a few other things) in Imperial.

And, at least at my elementary school, they did teach us something about Metric eventually... just not enough for us to actually be able to use it very well.

 

[Tarvos]

SI (which is the same as metric). I'm Dutch, so that's standard, and plus; SI makes a fuckload of sense. Imperial is just completely illogical.

 

[opaltiger]

In elementary school they say 'it's half an inch' and move on, in my experience. :/

But it's not! It's closer to a third, even. :(

 

[Dannichu]

Metric ALL THE WAY. Oh god, I am so bad with numbers, I struggle with even metric sometimes. I wish time was measured in sets of tens and hundreds because all the sixties confuse me ;;

 

[Michi]

... Am I seriously the only one who finds Imperial to be a lot easier? Oh, and most US citizens do actually understand a centimeter, because there's thirty in one foot and they're on rulers. :D

The US tried to convert to metric a while ago but failed and gave up.

 

[Adriane]

In elementary school they say 'it's half an inch' and move on, in my experience. :/

... what. I was taught it's about a pinky length. (Which, then, was accurate.)

... Am I seriously the only one who finds Imperial to be a lot easier? Oh, and most US citizens do actually understand a centimeter, because there's thirty in one foot and they're on rulers. :D

What, exactly, makes imperial easier apart from growing up with it?

Also it's not exactly 30 cm to a foot, and most Americans don't actually mentally imagine things with centimeters. If I told someone I was 184cm, they probably wouldn't know how tall that is immediately.

 

[1. Luftballon]

Hmm... let's say you start counting in base-11, with "A" representing the additional number: RH 1,2,3,4,5 LH 6,7,8,9,A RH 10,11,12,13,14 LH 15,16,17,18,19 RH 1A,20,21,22,23 LH 24,25,26,27,28

It falls apart quickly.

what? you get 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 a 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 1a 20. 0, 10, 20, and so on aren't on either hand; it's congruent to zero.

(but SIX SIX SIX SIX SIX is awesome SIX)

 

[bulbasaur]

what? you get 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 a 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 1a 20. 0, 10, 20, and so on aren't on either hand; it's congruent to zero.

(but SIX SIX SIX SIX SIX is awesome SIX)

Mind blown. It makes so much sense for some reason. My childhood is now corrupted.