Re: Metric Time (was Re: Why not 13 months? (Was La Systeme Metrique))

Teemu Peltonen (teemup@linux.teleste.fi)
11 Oct 1995 12:28:29 GMT

Lon Stowell (lstowell@pyrnova.mis.pyramid.com) wrote:
> Quick. You are 6 foot 1 inch tall. You have been strapped
> to a pole mounted on a railroad car. The railroad car is
> of the exact height that your feet are now exactly 1 foot
> above the tracks.
> You are approaching a tunnel at roughly 60 MPH. This is enough
> to cause a severe Excedrin headache if you guess wrong as to
> how much clearance you have.
> Would you rather see a sign that gives the clearance in Meters
> or Feet?
> "Warning. 7 foot 2 inch Clearance!!"
> "Warning 2.158 Meter Clearance".
> Bye-Bye, metric wienie.

Nice story. Let me rephrase it.

You are 180 cm tall. You have been strapped to a pole mounted on a railroad
car. The railroad car is of the exact height that your feet are now exactly
20 centimeters above the tracks. You are approaching a tunnel at roughly 100
KPH. This is enough to cahse a severe headache (was that Excedrin some
medicine over there or why is it there?) if you guess wrong as to how much
clearance you have. Would you rather see a sign that gives the clearance in
meters or feet? (they're not capitalized..)
"Warning, 220 cm clearance!"
"Warning, 97.777 inch clearance!" (I probably calculated it wrong, but you
get the idea)..

bye-bye, yank..

Haven't laughed this good in ages.. watching you defending some ancient
technology in such a hitech country.. seems like you were opposing strongly
usage of wheel, as it corrupts the americanism with European influences..:-)

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