Weights and measures

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From: Ben Pittenger (benpittenger@earthlink.net)
Date: Thu Nov 20 2003 - 06:51:06 PST 

Message-ID: <15228395.1069339867410.JavaMail.root@donald.psp.pas.earthlink.net>
Date: Thu, 20 Nov 2003 06:51:06 -0800 (GMT-08:00)
From: Ben Pittenger <benpittenger@earthlink.net>
Subject: Weights and measures

This doesn't directly address the questions raised, but as an interesting aside, remember that the metric system and our antiquated system of inches, pounds, etc. are no longer really separate entities. Over a century ago we adopted the metric system and have used it to define our other units ever since. I think it helps to bring this to the attention of students and recalcitrant parents.

Note the short history on a page from the National Institute of Standards and Technology - http://ts.nist.gov/ts/htdocs/200/202/lc1136a.htm#history An exerpt from that site indicates the following:

Most Americans think that our involvement with metric measurement is relatively new. In fact, the United States has been increasing its use of metric units for many years, and the pace has accelerated in the past three decades. In the early 1800's, the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey (the government's surveying and map-making agency) used meter and kilogram standards brought from France. In 1866, Congress authorized the use of the metric system in this country and supplied each state with a set of standard metric weights and measures.

In 1875, the United States solidified its commitment to the development of the internationally recognized metric system by becoming one of the original seventeen signatory nations to the Treaty of the Meter. The signing of this international agreement concluded five years of meetings in which the metric system was reformulated, refining the accuracy of its standards. The Treaty of the Meter, also know as the "Metric Convention," established the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM) in Sèvres, France, to provide standards of measurement for worldwide use.

In 1893, metric standards, developed through international cooperation under the auspices of BIPM, were adopted as the fundamental standards for length and mass in the United States. Our customary measurements -- the foot, pound, quart, etc. -- have been defined in relation to the meter and the kilogram ever since.

Ben

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