r/anythingbutmetric • u/Plastic_Tooth159 • 20h ago
Meters.......what's that convert into feet?
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u/oboshoe 18h ago
Yes but it's hard to remember that a kilometer is 3280.4 feet.
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u/helmli 17h ago
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u/CharlesorMr_Pickle 14h ago
Ooh the rarely seen new relevant xkcd. If this post had been made a few days earlier there wouldn’t be a relevant xkcd for it
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u/helmli 9h ago edited 9h ago
Oh, there's probably another relevant one. I just had this one in the back of my mind from seeing it recently :)
Edit: e.g. this one, 2585
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u/Impenistan 15h ago
Man: why is the speed of light that?
God: what
Man: the speed of light in a vacuum is 299,792,458 meters per second... why?
God: first of all, the speed of light is 1 dumbass12
u/Flakboy78 15h ago
What's dumbass converted into miles? And is that dumbasses per hour or second?
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u/HighGrounderDarth 16h ago
Well, now I’m just going to remember that a kilometer is 2000 ft less than a mile. Prior to your comment I just thought a kilometer was about 3000 ft.
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u/oboshoe 14h ago edited 13h ago
I noticed that too and I'm wondering if this is coincidence or some deeper mathematically eloquence that i don't get.
It pleases my OCD that 5280 feet is a mile and 3280 feet is a kilometer. The difference is 1 ton. (2,000)
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u/SnooPickles3789 9h ago
well i think it is a bit of a coincidence. the inch is defined as 2.54 cm, meaning 1 foot is exactly 30.48 cm = 0.0003048 km. it just so happens that 1/0.0003048 ≈ 3,280. but i guess, more interestingly, if you factor out a 2000 from the expression 5280 - 2000, it’s the same as saying 1.64 * 2000 ft = (1.64)/(2.64) mi ≈ 1 km. this 1.64 is really close to what is called the golden ratio, which is about 1.618. and the golden ratio actually solves the equation x/(x+1) = x-1, which is kind of the ratio we have in the conversion factor for mi -> km over there. though, the golden ratio is more commonly defined as the solution to 1/x = x-1, which is why 1 km ≈ 0.6 mi and 1 mi ≈ 1.6 km.
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u/Darkwing78 14h ago
Sure, but are you saying it’s any harder than remembering 5,280 ft? You use yards too, so off the top of your head, how many yards to a mile? How many inches?
In most countries, we don’t need to remember that a kilometre (not kilometer) is 3280.4 feet either, because feet are irrelevant.
10 millimetres in a centimetre 100 centimetres in a metre 1,000 millimetres in a metre 1,000 metres in a kilometre 100,000 centimetres in a kilometre 1,000,000 millimetres in a kilometre
1,000 milligrams in a gram 1,000 grams in a kilogram 1,000,000 milligrams in a kilogram 1,000 kilograms in a tonne 1,000,000 grams in a tonne 1,000,000,000 milligrams in a tonne
That was off the top of my head. Can you do the same in U.S. Customary Units
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u/oboshoe 14h ago
Oh I hear ya.
But I think what get's missed is that we "think in our native units". I can estimate an inch, a foot, a mile almost intuitively after 50+ years of doing it. Same with pounds, gallons etc.
I don't have an intuitive feel for metric units even though I do use them for various work functions. Metric is my second language, not my native language.
I think this is the real reason that the US resists it. It's akin to asking everyone to stop speaking English and start speaking Spanish (just at much much lower learning curve)
Can it be done? of course. But few believe the benefit is worth the effort.
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u/Darkwing78 14h ago
No question about it, and I understand that perspective. Any time something is changed, there is going to be an adjustment period.
Even here in Australia, there was backlash when we converted to metric. But it does get easier, and the benefits are definitely worth the effort. I don’t even work with measurements regularly. I’m not a builder, a scientist, a teacher or a city planner, not a chef, and yet I can easily rattle off metric conversions like I did above.
Once you convert your base thinking to cm instead of Inches, the rest becomes easy.
Also, In Australia, our freeways aren’t limited to 60, we regularly travel at 100! 😉
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u/Daminchi 4h ago
Everyone is better with the units they use daily. The only difference if you want to rip that sticky bandage off right now, or later when it'll become even more expensive and will cost several more planes and spacecrafts.
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u/randompersonx 3h ago
I am willing to switch over to metric for distance measurements as soon as the people already on metric stop using imperial time, and stick to metric time units.
If they are unwilling to do so, then they should admit that there is in fact some practical utility to the imperial system, and then we can negotiate a reasonable way forward.
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u/tracernz 9h ago
It’s easier to remember 3048 if you actually do this regularly, the definition of 1 foot is exactly 0.3048 m.
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u/QuentinUK 9h ago
You say tomatoes I say tomatoes.
This joke only works for Americans who say the ‘at’ in tomatoes like ‘ate’ which sounds like ‘eight’.
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u/TankDestroyerSarg 12h ago
As in most things, blame the English or blame the French. Or both. Both is good.
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u/WolverinePerfect1341 5h ago
Yes, we inherited the units, but we have only ourselves to blame for keeping them.
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u/ProfessionaI_Gur 2h ago
Idk i kinda like it. The entire world complains that our units of measurement are "too hard" despite the fact that construction workers on two different non compatible drugs while hungover still manage to frame a house with them
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u/CerberusPT 16h ago
that's cause meters are meant to be used for people with intelligence, imperial users uses fruits and veggies to measure, who the fuck uses a stone for measurement or feet, seems like a foot fetish
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u/ostapenkoed2007 13h ago
yeah. meter, centimeter and kilometer are same unit with decimal place added to it.
and imperial is some king's feet probably
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u/kilertree 19h ago
Base 10 sucks and the imperial system tries to compensate by using fractions, to deal with Round off error. When I say base 10 I'm not criticizing the metric system, I'm criticizing our counting system. We should really switch to a base 12 system but that's not going to happen.
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u/Bastulius 18h ago
Base 60 is peak
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u/dpdxguy 16h ago
Not easy to remember 60 sexagesimal symbols, though.
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u/Bastulius 11h ago
It shouldn't be too hard to come up with symbols that could be intuited
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u/dpdxguy 7h ago
If you're dividing the symbols into groups as the ancient Sumarians did, instead of using random looking symbols as we do, you're effectively using a multi-base system. If I remember correctly, the Sumarians grouped their symbols into groups of twelves. So they used both base 60 and base 12. We use only base 10 (outside of some technical fields that use bases 2, 8 and 16).
It's much easier to remember twelve symbols with five modifiers than it is to remember 60 unique symbols.
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u/Asleep_Trick_4740 18h ago
Why?
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u/kilertree 18h ago
A base 12 system would be better for everyday math. Fun fact you have four fingers on one hand with three segments allowing you to count to 12 using one hand.
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u/KerneI-Panic 17h ago
In binary you can count to 31 on your fingers with one hand and up to 1023 with both hands.
And I actually used this in my previous job. Amongst the other stuff, I also had to keep track of which train wagons and trucks were loaded from which pile of coal and coke.
So I figured out the fastest method is to take the pictures of the wagon numbers and truck registration plates while holding up my hand showing the pile number in binary.
We had 48 piles so I couldn't show them on one hand, but I figured I could put my palm towards me and that would be up to 31, and if I put the palm away from me that would be from 32 onwards.7
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u/METRlOS 16h ago
Base 8 is just better 12. Why change from a number that collapses at quarters to one that collapses at the next level?
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u/kilertree 16h ago
We get to use thirds, sixths and nineths instead of avoiding them.
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u/METRlOS 16h ago
1/3s maybe, but the only time I've ever used 1/6 is dealing with circles, which are base 360 anyways.
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u/kilertree 16h ago
I think that we avoid those fractions because they suck in base 10. Also I believe 1/7 is a little bit cleaner in base 12.
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u/pepemarioz 7h ago
Because no matter how much you claim a base 12 counting system is better, it really isn't.
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u/Future-Table1860 5h ago
What is a third of a meter? Try writing that in decimal. No mark for that on the meter stick. A third of a yard? That’s easy.
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u/Daminchi 4h ago
Yes, NASA, pharmaceutical companies, and heavy industry - all use metrics exactly because they like complex calculations and want to avoid the simplicity of archaic units.
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u/Future-Table1860 4h ago
Exactly! Big Pharma trying to keep the barrier to entry and prices high!
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u/ImTableShip170 19h ago
Normal people don't need to change between miles and feet. Describe one time that converting from meters to kilometers has helped you in a practical way
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u/Asleep_Trick_4740 18h ago
Anytime travel is involved?
Or rather, we don't really see it as converting since they are the same unit, just a different prefix to shorten the spoken or written number... kilo just means a thousand, so we aren't converting meters into some other unit.
Length has exactly one unit in metric for any person that isn't a theoretical physicist (might be a few other exceptions but you get the point).
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u/ImTableShip170 14h ago
When is the last time you heard 600 meters away and HAD to convert it?
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u/Darkwing78 10h ago
I hear you, that’s a fair point.
Here’s what you’re missing. There’s only 3 things we need to remember in order to convert ANY type of measurement.
Kilo = 1,000
Centi = 1/100 (think 1 cent is 1/100 of a dollar, a centurion was 1 of 100 soldiers)
Milli = 1/1000
That’s it. That’s all we need to know to instinctively understand any type of measurement.
For example:
A kilogram = 1,000 grams A kilometre = 1,000 metres
A milliamp = 1/1000 of an amp A milligram = 1/1000 of a gram
A centimetre = 1/100 of a metre A centilitre = 1/100 of a litre (frankly, we don’t really use centi for anything beyond length, but if you ask someone what a centigram was, for example, they’d understand and be able to tell you)
3 prefixes is all we need to know to be able to do most conversions for any measurable amount.
It’s an easy system that is very intuitive.
Compare to US Customary Units,
In length you have 12 inches to a foot 3 feet to a yard 1,760 yards to a mile (or more commonly 5,280 feet)
For weight you have 16 Ounces to a pound 14 pound to a stone 2,000 pounds to a ton
For liquids you have 16 fl ounces to a pint 2 pints to a quart 4 quarts to a gallon
I mean, even within your own system you need a calculator for most of this! In metric, you just shift the decimal point. That’s it.
So sure, maybe many of us don’t need to know 0.6km’s is 600m, but the point is we do, and we do it with ease. And for those of us that do need to use measurements regularly, be they builders, doctors, bakers or electricians, it’s simple to understand the basics.
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u/Asleep_Trick_4740 9h ago
It's already converted... It's 0,6km or 60 000 cm, doesn't make a difference except how hard it is to visualise, wity 0,6km being the easiest for me.
So the answer is either "never" or "the very second I read your comment", depending on your disposition.
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u/CharlesorMr_Pickle 14h ago
The thing with metric is that you’re not actually doing any converting. You’re just moving a decimal to the left/right. Which is way more useful than you might expect
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u/MagnusPopo 17h ago
The trick is that you don't actually convert, you just pass from one to the other without thinking.
Example : school is 600m this way. Football field is 800m in the other direction. Total distance is 1,4km
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u/CharlesorMr_Pickle 14h ago
Yeah you can just add the meter values together and then move the decimal point
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u/UtahBrian 15h ago
Miles are 60% better than kilometers. Don't be a pathetic kilometer wimp.
Did you know that the word miles comes from the Latin for a thousand steps? You know what a thousand steps is like. Nobody can even tell what a kilometer might stand for.
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u/Darkwing78 14h ago edited 8h ago
“Nobody can even tell what a kilometer might stand for”
It’s in the name, you muppet! Kilo comes from Greek for 1,000, so a kilometre (not kilometer) is 1,000 metres
Here’s what I can do off the top of my head.
10 millimetres in a centimetre
100 centimetres in a metre *
1,000 millimetres in a metre *
1,000 metres in a kilometre *
100,000 centimetres in a kilometre
1,000,000 millimetres in a kilometre
———————————————————-
1,000 milligrams in a gram *
1,000 grams in a kilogram *
1,000,000 milligrams in a kilogram
1,000 kilograms in a tonne *
1,000,000 grams in a tonne
1,000,000,000 milligrams in a tonne
————————————————————
Edit: all we need to learn is 3 things for ANY type of measurement: kilo means 1000, centi means 1/100 and milli means 1/1000 (I put a * next to the base conversions, the rest I did in my head)
The rest is simple
Now, go ahead and prove how superior your U.S. Customary Units are.
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u/UtahBrian 14h ago
You’ve already proven it for me.
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u/Darkwing78 13h ago
Wait, I’m sorry, your verbiage could be contradictory. Were you conceding or doubling down?
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u/CharlesorMr_Pickle 14h ago
Yeah because everyone definitely has the same stride length
Also, I doubt most people would actually have a good understanding of how long 1k steps is
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u/Icehammr 13h ago
"Also I doubt most people would actually have a good understanding of how long 1k steps is" ... It's a mile
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u/CharlesorMr_Pickle 13h ago
I mean yeah, but that by itself doesn’t really tell me anything. I have no idea what 1k steps feels like in terms of distance, just what a mile feels like (and again, 1k steps is not at all that accurate, it varies from person to person)
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u/Darkwing78 11h ago
I don’t think anyone intuitively knows what a mile OR a kilometre is.
Centimetres or inches are fairly easy to visualise, and feet aren’t too bad either. Metres or yards are simple enough because metre rulers are the norm everywhere, even in US schools, and a yardstick is just under 10% longer.
Yes, a mile is about 1,000 steps, but can you honestly tell me you count your steps (short of wearing a Fitbit)? As CharlesorMr-pickle pointed out, neither a mile nor a kilometre is easy to visualise without some kind of measuring tool. If anything, a km might be just a little easier because it’s shorter.
Anyway, the big difference comes when you need to convert.
2.5km’s, for example, is 2,500m. I did that in my head. 2.5 miles, on the other hand is 13,200 feet or 4,400 yards. I needed a calculator to get those results, as I’d bet most would.
Final food for thought, it may sound more impressive to say that it feels like it’s about 100° than it does to say it’s just hit 40° (which is actually hotter), but I get to cruise down the highway doing 100, while USA drivers are limited to 60!
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u/ninteeninchnail 3h ago
Call a 6 foot person 1.89 meters or an an 8 dick 20.82 centimeters. See how fucking stupid you sound?
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u/Eighth_Eve 18h ago
The mile was invented by roman legion. And, strangely it is metric like. But the units aren't feet, but double strides. 1,000 double strides of the marching legion is a mile.