Metric Day the easy way

Today is the 10th of October. As with previous years, I choose to recognize today as "Metric Day". I last wrote an article about Metric Day in 2011 and, in the time since then, I've noticed that many people in the United States of America are becoming more comfortable with the International System of Units (SI) [Wikipedia]. I'm not suggesting that those individuals are comfortable with its use, but it certainly seems that a growing number of people are recognizing the convenience of it in our global community. (Similar to the change I have witnessed in the public opinion of Daylight Saving Time.)

The use of SI is wide-spread and those who are unfamiliar with SI find themselves somewhat isolated in a growing global community. Today, I hope to provide some easy-to-remember tips to those individuals who are curious about SI, but are reluctant to adopt its use.

Conversationally, we often discuss the environment and our own comfort within it. As a result, common units of temperature are often cited and discussed. Rather than wrestle with a more accurate mental conversion or calculating one using a computer, try to remember the tips below; it might speed your conversational comprehension and free up your mind for the social aspect of agreeing that 30°C is rather warm.

QUICK TEMPERATURE CONVERSION

F minus 30, divided by 2 ≈ C
C multiplied by 2, add 30 ≈ F

People find themselves discussing distances internationally for a variety of reasons. Perhaps you or someone you know is in the US military and stationed abroad. Or maybe you have a friend interested in joining you on a 5 kilometer run, but they hesitate because they're only comfortable running 3 miles. I hope the quick methods below will help you or your friend adjust quickly to the measurement most familiar.

QUICK DISTANCE OR SPEED CONVERSION

mi divided by 5, multiplied by 8 ≈ km
km divided by 8, multiplied by 5 ≈ mi

ANOTHER (LESS ACCURATE) DISTANCE OR SPEED CONVERSION

mi divided by 3, multiplied by 5 ≈ km
km divided by 5, multiplied by 3 ≈ mi
(This second set of distance conversions might be noticeably less accurate for numbers higher than 10)

Technology has allowed our ever-growing population to become evermore connected. Borders and boundaries begin to fade in meaning as we correspond and collaborate with people instantaneously, regardless of our location or theirs in world. In a world of dizzying communication, using the same measurement "language" is the difference between clarity and confusion.

Normality has been restored

An hour ago, the last clocks in the Northern Hemisphere were freed from Daylight Saving Time (DST). Sadly, there are some in the Southern hemisphere which have recently began their ritual of madness; for them I offer consolation with my article on "Why I hate Daylight Saving Time".

I am content to be rid of the odd adjustment for a few months and was set on climbing atop my soapbox and repeating a few of the reasons why you should be too. However, I noticed something this last week which gave me a bit of satisfaction. Discussions (both online and off) about DST have turned largely to criticism. I would overhear people on the bus who were "glad that Daylight Saving Time would be over soon, so that they could have their mornings back". I read many postings through social media of friends complaining of the troubles they had starting their day due to the dark mornings.

You see, DST was extended in the United States in 2007 by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 introduced by Joe Barton, Texas Republican and member of the Tea Party caucus. It should come as no surprise that Joe Barton was a consultant for an Oil and Gas company [Joe Barton - House.gov]. Barton has also been involved interfering in matters of environmental protection. Joe's Act was a success, by the way, a boon for the corporations interested in shifting consumers home earlier in the Summer afternoon (meaning, more AC) and awake earlier in the Winter morning (meaning, more heating). I'm going to stop myself here though about the involvement of energy corporations, mainly because it's all been said already and -- to my satisfaction -- I think most people get it now. (See my article in 2008: "Ditch Daylight Saving Time".)

Observers of DST have a bit of a conundrum, similar to many other system we're seeing protested these days, we're all subjected to the system as long as we continue to participate in it. Unlike oppressive big-brother governments, big financial institutions, and mass food-chains, time isn't just something we can institute locally; in fact it's actually federally prohibited in the USA [Gazette, The (Colorado Springs)]. It was that inability that caused me to realize something about Daylight Saving Time which I hadn't considered before: the practice of DST is similar to the use of the US measurement system. Meaning, it's hardened into the minds of its participants.

In dealing with Metrication, I learned years ago that you cannot change to a new system through confrontation or arrogance; you change through education in the new system while simultaneously slowly moving the old practice toward obsolescence. By the time you suggest removing the old system, most people (which is what matters in democracy) don't care if you do because they've been primarily using the new one anyway. For DST, this means that behaviors have to be changed in such a way that it won't matter what "time" it really is. In keeping with my choice in March, I am still going to avoid telling you how you might choose to spend your day, but I will tell you what I've chosen to do for myself.

Daylight Saving Time is all about "moving daylight". Repeating some text from eight months ago:

The idea of Daylight Saving Time is to make the most of the hours of daylight available during the Summer. That's fantastic! Unfortunately, people use DST as a crutch to hobble a few days of good feelings out of "more" daylight. You've heard this before, but I'll say it again: If you want more daylight, then use it when it's there. Consistently.

All of this shift is around the accepted "9 to 5 day". In a "9 to 5 day", 13:00 (1pm) is made the center point. I thought that was odd, considering noon (12:00) is supposed to be midday, so I chose to rethink my "day" as beginning at 8, thus I reset my midday to 12:00. Under DST, "high noon" occurs at 13:00 for nearly 75% of the year. (You can imagine how much that screws up how to "Tell time using the Sun or Moon".)

Greenwich GB Daylight Chart - Wikipedia

Now, my shift in thinking does not mean that I get to leave my job sooner, nor does it mean that I always greet my alarm with happiness in the morning. Similar to my state-of-mind with measurement -- where I use SI (aka Metric) in my head, but convert for the convenience of others in conversation -- I still participate in the daily schedules of those around me. Work is work and if you're lucky enough to have a job right now, you work the hours to which you and your employer agree upon. I do enjoy at least one advantage though, because of my choice I have freed myself from the lock-step of the populace. My choice to change my thinking allows me to shift my non-work activities to whatever feels right for me: I'm able to get in a bit of exercise, while the "9-to-5er" is just waking up; I can stop by the store on a dark Winter morning instead of dodging shopping carts in the aisles in the afternoon.

Another reason that this works well for me is that other parts of society have shifted as well. In the hopes of drawing more customers and more revenue, businesses have been lengthening their hours of operation; some banks are now opening an hour earlier than they did years ago and some retail stores even earlier than that. The minds and traditions of society have also adapted, the American dinner hour used to be 18:00 (6pm), enough time for the bread-winning father to stroll through the door after his 9-to-5 and sit down at the dinner table with his patiently-waiting wife and two or three kids. Now, due to the prevalence and popularity of "primetime television", meal times have been shifted earlier. Besides, now father is expected to help out after the meal and if anyone in that household expects to do anything after dinner that evening, the meal will shift earlier out of necessity.

You see, our observance of DST isn't only about time, it's about lifestyle and tradition. And the beauty of humanity is how we change and adapt, replacing old tools and techniques with new technology and better understood ideas. Don't get too comfortable with those new ideas though, they'll change eventually too.

Metrication Day 2011

Today (October 10th) is Metrication Day! Metrication Day is a day on which I make a slightly more concerted effort to spread the knowledge and adoption of the International System of Units (a.k.a SI or the Metric System). Last year's Metrication Day was what I called the "Ultimate Metrication Day" and I dedicated 10 days of articles to the cause of metric education. Education is the subject which I'd like to focus on this year.

First, a narrative:

Having long put Imperial units out of my head, I recently asked someone how many ounces were in a cup. He and I had discussed my affinity for SI previously, so he tried to poke fun at my question. However, he couldn't actually answer my question. Was it 4? 8? No, that's not right, maybe 6? I stood there laughing as he ran to his computer and pulled it up. He tried to make sense of it, but then noticed that cups were different all over the world.

I pointed out that his confusion was a perfect example of why Imperial measurements are both impractical and confusing. He went on to say that he "was not a good example of a typical American" and criticized his own intelligence. I pointed out to him that his lack of understanding was actually very typical of American scientific knowledge.

Science education in the United States is critically failing. Note these survey results from an article published in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

An understanding of the most basic principles of science appear to be lacking. There are many reasons and possible causes for educational failure in the United States, but I don't want to "blame the system(s)" in this article; I'd like to instead put the ownership in the hands of each individual. You have the power to ask "WHY?"

Science is about exploration; to gain an understanding about the things we do not know. No one source will ever answer all questions. Think for yourself and seek a deeper understanding. Perhaps it's that too many, as children, were given the answer "Because I said so" whenever they asked "Why?" Personally, I have and will always answer any child's question of "Why?" with my best answer, or, at the very least, "That's a great question, let's find that answer together".

Holding to an established system, instead of asking "why" is a primary cause for why the United States has not adopted the Metric system. There is literal stupidity in the notion that tradition will be held to for tradition's sake. Never accept "because I said so"; find a better source, one which will help nurture your curiosity not belittle it. Explore the world around you, excite your mind with interest, accept the dynamic nature of "fact", and wonder at the beauty of information. When you do ask why, you will see that the benefits of adopting SI far out-weigh the costs.

Investing in futures

I am quite impressed and encouraged by the positive response I've received over the last ten days regarding my posts on the International System of Units (SI). I admit that I presented a lot of information; I hope I succeeded in presenting it in a simple - and more importantly - considerate manner.

The concept of "key conversion points" should be beneficial to many people. Personally, I kept a laminated copy of points in my pocket while I retrained my brain a few years ago. Additionally, I found it extremely helpful to make changes to SI (or both) wherever possible (e.g. HVAC thermostat, weather reports, websites, GPS, etc.). Finally, I prepared myself for the long haul of making the change.

There are certainly those who will roll their eyes or ridicule you for using SI, but know this.... You are the one who can travel internationally with ease; you are the one whose superiors will look to when you need to interface with a team overseas; you are "bilingual" in measurements.

Congratulations. Let us hope that soon those who use SI in the USA are not the exception, but the rule.

Index of Ultimate Metrication Day articles:

2010-10-10: The Ultimate Metrication Day - Recognizing the "Ultimate Metrication Day"
2010-10-11: Getting in the Metric Mind-set - Changing mental habits
2010-10-12: It's still cold whether °C or °F - Temperature measurements
2010-10-13: Covering all our bases - SI prefixes and their use
2010-10-14: Going the distance - Measures of length (meters, miles, feet, etc.)
2010-10-15: Mass makes the world go 'round - Calculating mass/weight (kilograms, pounds, etc.)
2010-10-16: Not loud, just spacious - Volume units (liters, gallons, fluid ounces, etc.)
2010-10-17: Conversation and display - How to fit SI units into daily use
2010-10-18: Diverting for a time - A short introductory presentation about "Decimal Time" (which has no official tie to the International System of Units)
2010-10-19: Compatibility and consistency - Presenting the importance of moving toward a Metric America

Compatibility and consistency

Since the "Ultimate Metrication Day", I've written a lot about HOW to adopt the International System of Units (SI). I think it's time I address the WHY....

In that initial post, I mentioned the fact that the United States of America is one of only three countries which has not adopted SI. I'll repeat what I said then, this fact does not bode well for the USA (nor Burma and Liberia). We are at significant risk of falling behind and out of touch with our global partners. To use a very crude and cruel metaphor, we are quickly becoming the creepy guy who is awkwardly without taste or the skills necessary for effective communication.

The United States of America is a leader in technological development, business incubation, and social innovation; how then can we lag so behind every other country in something as significant as measurement. We risk losing our lead and respect in every area I just listed; in fact, we already have damaged our reputation in some areas thanks to confusion with using US customary units.

In 1998, the US space agency NASA (a clear leader in space exploration) "lost" a Mars orbiter because every team, in every firm, used SI except one. One team made the mistake of using US customary units; this was the direct cause of mission failure at the cost of hundreds of millions of dollars. [JPL NASA]

There have been (and continue to be) cases where confusion over units has resulted in injury and death because medication was incorrectly administered in the wrong dose. (I'm not even going to cite a specific example because of the sheer number; simply Google "wrong dose medication" and see how many are due to the use of incorrect units.)

Some people have chosen to hold to US customary units for the sake of "tradition" or because "it's not worth the expense of changing". All things WILL change, even "tradition". Furthermore, the expense of making a change is becoming notably less relative to the expense of converting/communicating/coordinating the difference between "us" and "them".

Diverting for a time

Have you ever pondered the logic behind our base 6 counting system for time? Or been confused by trying to figure out how many minutes or seconds are in two hours? four hours? six? If you have, you're not alone. To put it bluntly, our system of tracking time is messed up. It's confusing, weird to explain, even unnatural.

It's not really "metric" in the official International System of Units (SI) way - as I've been blogging for the last week - but there is at least one alternative to our current system of tracking the passage of time: decimal time.

The system of Decimal Time divides a day into 10 hours; where 0 is "midnight", making 5 "noon". It's an extremely simple concept to explain. Think of each moment as ticking away a percentage of that day. Noon is halfway through the cycle of the day, so 50% or 5:00.

Furthermore, each hour is divided into 100 minutes (00 through 99); again this gives us an extension on that percentage concept. The seconds of those minutes are the same. Fun fact, a "decimal second" is just about the resting heart rate of the average human being; meaning, you could almost keep time using your heart.

I, personally, use decimal time wherever I can, but - due the risk of confusing those around me - it tends to only be in specific instances where only my eyes are reading the display.

I'd like to demonstrate how natural decimal time is through some very simple exercises. Ready? (I guarantee you already know this as if you learned it as a child.)

If the sun rises at 2:50 and sets at 7:50, what percentage of the day was it transiting the sky?

How many minutes have passed between 5:00 and 7:00? How many seconds?

It's currently 9:23. How many minutes until it's 0:00?

Some of those were pretty tough, but I would guess that you figured them out with a little thought. Here are the answers: 50%; 200 minutes, 20000 seconds; 77 minutes.

Again, this is not related directly to the International System of Units nor would it be something which would be a part of the adoption of SI, but decimal time does demonstrate the strength and natural feel of a base 10 system.

Conversation and display

As I've mentioned before, the tricky thing about the adoption of the International System of Units (SI) in the US is getting more people to readily use its units in their everyday lives. You can assist with this process by presenting SI in a natural and logical way. (Avoid talking about SI with arrogance, as that will most likely cause the listener to stop caring all-together.)

Conversation, in our modern age, can be had in at least two ways: verbally and textually. Presenting SI equivalents textually is relatively easy. For example, 5 km (approx. 3 mi); 20 C (approx. 70 F); etc. Using SI equivalents in verbal communication can be a little more complex; especially if you haven't already performed the conversion.

Here are some ways in which I've managed to sneak SI into my everyday communication....

"Could I get a 10 meter cable from you? .... That's about 32 feet."
(In the pause, I was able to convert to feet for the gentleman. It also allowed the "10 meter" statement to sink in and give the "32 feet" more relevance in relation.)

"I try to drink about 2 liters of water while on that 40 km ride. 2 liters is pretty decent; it's about a half gallon, but I really should be drinking more than that on a ride that's nearly 25 miles." (Basically, I just repeated the same information two different ways.)

"Wow! It is warm in here! It's got to be at least 25 Celsius.... What do you think? Is it about 80 in here?"

Try it out. I think you'll find that people readily accept your use of SI, if you provide the necessary context WITHOUT coming off as arrogant or pushy.

Not loud, just spacious

"Yesterday" I looked at mass; in a few places within that article I mention volume, so I'd like to proceed in that direction "today".

The official SI unit of volume is the cubic meter (m³), but the common unit accepted for use along side SI is the liter (1 L = 1 dm³; reference prefixes for assistance). I'm going to choose to focus on the liter when it comes to the comparison to US customary units of volume.

US customary units are horribly overrun with measures of volume (even more so than the complications in measures of length): gallons, fluid ounces, cups, tablespoons, teaspoons, etc.! I'm going to only deal with gallons and fluid ounces; I'll let you handle the process of getting to those from the others. (Maybe it'll be extra incentive to simplify with down to consistent measures.)

Key conversion points for Volume (gallons / liters):

1 gal ≈ 3.8 L
2 gal ≈ 7.5 L
* 4 gal ≈ 15 L
8 gal ≈ 30 L
16 gal ≈ 60 L

With this I wanted to show the approximate relationship between 4 gallons and 15 L. Multiples of four can be easy to calculate and, as I've mentioned before, multiples of 5 are natural; which makes this match up almost clean.

For example, if you were trying to estimate how many Liters were in 20 gallons.... 20 gal = 4 gal * 5 ≈ 15 L * 4 = 60 L. Obviously, the approximation takes us off a bit, but you can see how this gets us in the same conceptual neighborhood.

Key conversion points for volume (ounces / milliliters):

* 1 fl oz ≈ 30 mL
8 fl oz ≈ 237 mL
16 fl oz ≈ 473 mL
20 fl oz ≈ 591 mL

Unfortunately, the approximation of 1 fl oz to 30 mL will quickly get out-of-hand as you multiply it out; therefore, I've included common fl oz measurements to help get the L equivalents into your memory. Keep in mind that 100 mL = 10% of a liter.

Mass makes the world go 'round

Some people might consider metrication a massive undertaking, but it can actually be very easy to accomplish if people put their weight behind the effort. Let's address that effort literally....

The unit used to measure mass in the International System of Units (SI) is the kilogram. (Yes, you read that correct; the base unit is the kilogram, not the gram.) I find beauty in the use of kilograms by way of its (approximate) relation to volume, but that's another topic.

Before getting to my key conversion points for mass, I want to point out that SI is already in wide-spread use for mass (and volume) for drug prescription/purchase/use (both legal and illegal). So, for many, the conceptualization of mass (whether it's a milligram or a kilogram) has already been well established.

Mass Key Conversion Points (kilogram / pounds):

0.5 kg ≈ 1.1 lbs
* 1 kg ≈ 2.2 lbs
** 5 kg ≈ 11 lbs
10 kg ≈ 22 lbs
25 kg ≈ 55 lbs
50 kg ≈ 110 lbs
* 100 kg ≈ 220 lbs

If you can remember the 1 kg = 2.2 lbs rule, then you should have an easy time performing the rough multiplication to convert. For example, 11 kg = 10 kg + 1 kg = (2.2 lbs * 10) + 2.2 lbs = 22 lbs + 2.2 lbs = 24.2 lbs.
It may be even easier to rely on the 5 to 11 rule; as five is a very easy number to round to and 11 multiplies easily enough¹. For example, 500 kg = 5 kg * 100 = 11 lbs * 100 = (10 lbs * 100) + (1 lb * 100) = 1000 lbs + 100 lbs = 1100 lbs.

As far as reversing the conversion, just remember that 2 lbs is "a little less" than 1 kg and then you can adjust the conversion once you have an estimated kilogram value. For example, 300 lbs "is a little less than" 150 kg... 150 kg = 5 kg * 30 = 11 lbs * 30 = (10 lbs * 30) + (1 lb * 30) = 300 lbs + 30 lbs = 330 lbs.

¹ For you math whizzes: Yes, the multiplication of 11 can be made into one step, but I tried to make it easy to digest for the general populace by breaking it out into 10 and 1.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I apologize for the three day delay in posting; I've had some difficulty accessing the internet during times which are appropriate for blogging. I plan to write and date the "missed" entries (this one included) as if they were written on time, for organizational purposes.

Going the distance

How far is it to the grocery store? What is the top speed of your favorite vehicle? How tall is the dinosaur chasing you?

We use units of distance/length everywhere; it's an essential dimension for other measures as well (e.g. speed = distance/time, area = length A * length B, etc.). Establishing a foundational understanding of SI distance units is paramount to a strong basis in Metrication as a whole.

In opposition to our efforts to see metric in everyday use is the fact that - when it comes to distance/length - Americans are unilaterally presented with US customary units. Some examples: the speed limit signs are given in miles/hr, our construction experts deal in feet and inches, we hike "14ers" (mountains approximately 14,000 ft in height), we watch American football players on the 100 yard field.

Whereas we see feet, inches, acres, miles, yards, and even the rare league; the SI measures of distance only have ONE...the meter. This is a distinct advantage over customary units.

As I presented in the post about temperature, using "key conversion points" is a helpful method. Here are some that I use, but I encourage you to find/create your own as well.

Distance Key Conversion Points (miles / kilometers)

* 100 mi ≈ 160 km
+ 88 mi ≈ 141 km
* 75 mi ≈ 120 km
* 62 mi ≈ 100 km
55 mi ≈ 88 km
*50 mi ≈ 80 km
40 mi ≈ 64 km
30 mi ≈ 48 km
*20 mi ≈ 32 km
*10 mi ≈ 16 km
*5 mi ≈ 8 km
3 mi ≈ 5 km
1 mi ≈ 1.61 km

Once again, I've placed asterisks next to the ones I think are nice to remember well. (I also placed a + next to the one that Marty and/or Doc Brown should watch for.)

Length Key Conversion Points (meters / feet)

*1000 m ≈ 3280 ft
*305 m ≈ 1000 ft
100 m ≈ 328 ft
*25 m ≈ 82 ft
10 m ≈ 32 ft
*5 m ≈ 16 ft
2.5 m ≈ 8 ft
2 m ≈ 6.6 ft
*1.5 m ≈ 5 ft
1 m ≈ 3 ft

Remembering the 1000 = 3280 rule sometimes makes other mental math easier. The 305 (roughly 300) to 1000 rule can be convenient in conversion; for example, "People enjoy hiking '14ers' in Colorado; peaks which are 14000 feet high or about... 4200 meters tall [ignoring the 5s and performing mental math... 300 x 10 = 3000, 300 x 4 = 1200, 3000 + 1200 = 4200].

Don't forget to use the prefixes where convenient!

Covering all our bases

Over the next few days, I intend to introduce you to some of the base units of the International System of Units (SI). Before I do, I'd like to spend some time on the prefix; a major component of SI units and a key advantage over other systems of measure.

A prefix is added to a "base unit" to indicate a multiple (or subdivision) of that unit. (We're already somewhat accustomed to this idea in computing.) The beauty of the prefix is that it represents a power of ten (e.g. 1, 10, 100, 1000, etc.).

(Some) Standard SI prefixes (Name [symbol] Factor = Number "cardinal/ordinal"):

micro- [μ] 10^-6 .000001 "millionth"
* milli- [m] 10^-3 .001 "thousandth"
* centi- [c] 10^-2 .01 "hundredth"
deci- [d] 10^-1 .1 "tenth"
10⁰ 1 "one"
deca- [da] 10¹ 10 "ten"
hecto- [h] 10² 100 "hundred"
* kilo- [k] 10³ 1 000 "thousand"
mega- [M] 10⁶ 1 000 000 "million"
giga- [G] 10⁹ 1 000 000 000 "billion"
tera- [T] 10¹² 1 000 000 000 "trillion"

You can find more information (and a better chart) in the SI prefix Wikipedia article.

Spend some time familiarizing yourself with the prefixes. I placed asterisks next to the ones I believe are the most common. Learn the relationships between the prefix and its base (e.g. 1000 units in a kilo-, 100 centi- in a unit, etc.). Since our number system is base 10, learning/counting multiples of ten comes naturally (literally, on our hands and feet).

It's still cold whether °C or °F

One of the most challenging aspects of adopting a new measurement system is relearning the "feel" or "look" of things and estimating their measure. In the case of temperature, many people are able to estimate based on a lifelong association of what the number on a thermometer feels like. For example, 4.5°C (40°F) is "cold" while 40°C (104°F) is "hot".

We first learn the arbitrary word association with the feeling when we are children. We feel the sensation, then we learn to verbalize that sensation as "hot" or "cold". Later we assign a personal range of numbers to that sensation/verbalization.

Your brain has already formed its association between temperature scale and sensation; so we need to establish an overlay using new numbers. I use a method I call "key conversion points" to help myself quickly estimate equivalent values without the use of mental math or a calculator.

Key Temperature Conversion Points (Celsius benchmarks):

50°C = 122°F
40°C = 104°F
* 37°C = 98.6°F (Normal human body temperature)
* 35°C = 95°F
25°C = 77°F
* 21°C = 70°F (Room temperature)
15°C = 59°F
* 10°C = 50°F
0°C = 32°F (Water freezes)
-15°C = 5°F

Key Temperature Conversion Points (Fahrenheit benchmarks):

* 95°F = 35°C
80°F = 26.67°C
70°F = 21°C (Room temperature)
60°F = 15.5°C
* 50°F = 10°C
32°F = 0°C (Water freezes)
23°F = -5°C
* -4°F = -20°C
* -40°F = -40°C

Memorizing some (or all) of these conversion points will help you start estimating right away. (I put asterisks next to my favorites.) Eventually, the SI numbers will start to have the same impact as the customary unit values; you'll still think "cold" whether the weather is given in Celsius or Fahrenheit.

Getting in the Metric Mind-set

Americans have used customary units for centuries (though, officially, SI was made the basis for our units in 1893). We are habitually familiar with a certain system. The point is, we need to retrain our brains into a different way of thinking about measurements before we can fully adapt to or even adopt a new system; some people may find this more difficult than others.

The first step is to consciously accept "the Metric mind-set"; find a reason to value the use of SI measurements (e.g. base 10 counting, international communication/cooperation, etc.) [further reading: Metrication in the United States - Wikipedia]

Once you've acknowledged some value in the use of the metric system, I recommend observing where SI units are already used....

- Passing your local bank, try to remember the Celsius temperature display and how it feels.
- Pick up that large soft drink bottle at the grocery store and remind yourself, "Wow. This is a 2 LITERS."
- Look closely at the label on a gallon of milk.... How many milliliters does it contain? How many liters is that?
- Convert the distance of your commute from feet and miles into meters and kilometers. (Even if it's just 2 or 3 meters from the bed to the desk.)

These small thoughts and/or conversions will help you see how the things around you "measure up" to the International System of Units.

Tomorrow, I'll begin sharing some ways you can remember "key conversion points" to help you estimate equivalents in your head on-the-fly.

The Ultimate Metrication Day

As I have sometimes recognized in the past, October 10th is "Metric Day". This year is especially unique because it is October 10th of 2010 (10-10-10); making it a sort of "ultimate" day for encouraging metrication.

There are only three nations in the world which have not officially adopted the International System of Units (aka Metric System) as their primary or sole system of measurement: Burma, Liberia, and the United States. This is not a good thing for the United States; as we speed toward a lifestyle of inter-connectivity and international communication, it will become essential that the USA adapt or risk falling behind its global partners.

When recognizing "Metric Day" in the past, I've made an effort to spread the knowledge and usage of the International System of Units (SI). This year, in recognition of what I'll call the "Ultimate Metrication Day", I am going to up the ante....
Over the next 10 days (beginning on the 11th and going until the 20th), I will share a tip or technique about using SI in everyday life and make the conversion seem that much less daunting.

Metric Day 2009

Happy Metric Day, everyone!

Today is October 10th (10/10).

For the next 10 days, I challenge you to acknowledge, observe, and use the International System of Units (aka SI or Metric). I suggest starting small, recognizing fun personal uses for SI which don't disrupt your interaction with others. For example try switching your thermostat to Celsius, observing the km/hr on your vehicle's speedometer, or converting your height to meters and/or your weight to kilograms.

I started like this a few years ago and I've enjoyed using SI ever since. These small steps can be both fun and educational; and, who knows, maybe one of those fun personal uses will make more sense to you than SI and will stick.

Metric is better

If you have any doubts about how absolutely inefficient the US measurement system is, take a look at this....

URL: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Omh8Ito-05M

Now, if they had used the Metric system, they would have been done in about 15 seconds.

Questions, anyone?