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Re: Metric Time (was Re: Why not 13 months? (Was La Systeme Metrique))
Mike Fee (M.Fee@irl.cri.nz)
Mon, 16 Oct 1995 09:53:08 LOCAL
ciacon@ix.netcom.com (WAYNE JOHNSON) redefines the world with the comment:
gmiller@inca.co.nz (Gaven Miller) writes:
>>ANDREW GRYGUS (aax@ix.netcom.com) wrote:
>>> 60 killometers per hour = 1 killometer per minute.
>> That is "kilometres".
> Not in the Americas, or in Europe, except Britain. You're from New
> Zealand? Correct the spelling down there, will you?
> Get with the rest of the world!
Sorry Wane, but a "meter" is a large blake bakelite box with a
number of large knobs, a semicircle of little numbers around the edge and a
rotating needle which can point at them. Well, OK, these days it is probably a
small plastic box with an LCD display, but you get the picture?
Consider also, Whayn; a "metre", and that is exactly how the French spell it
(they should know), is a thing about 1 650 763.73 times the wavelength (in
vacuum) of a particular electronic transition in the element Krypton. It is
also roughly the distance you can run in about one tenth of a second.
Be aware Whein, that "kilo" (derived from the Greek) is the official SI unit
prefix to denote 1000 units.
For your information Wain "killo" isn't yet anything - (this of course gives
you the freedom to define it as you desire, but it is to late to patent the
term as you have already published it).
Thus Wayn: "kilometre" is 1000 metres - or about 6/10 miles for the metrically
challenged; "kilometer" consists of a large number of measuring instruments
(although I wouldn't be averse to the notion that it could be considered as an
alternative spelling of the former); "killometer" is undefined (as is be
atttometer, femmtogram, piccosecond, nannovolt, miccrokelvin, miillicandela,
cenntimole, decciradian, deccasteradian, deccanewton, hecctojoule,
meggawatt, giggapascal, terracoulomb, pettafarad and exxamaxwell, ...pant,
pant, pant...) and it is certainly not 1000 of anything.
Need I say more?
Mike
--
Mike Fee
M.Fee@irl.cri.nz
Industrial Research Limited
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