Why the heck does America still use outdated measurement and date units?

[Huntn]

Until the 1970s, common usage in the UK was that a billion was 1,000,000,000,000 - that is, a million million.

To avoid confusion, primarily regarding finance, the UK official declared that a billion would be 1,000,000,000 - a thousand million - just like the USA.

What is a billion?​

What constitutes a billion is a source of occasional confusion. In official UK statistics the term is now used to denote 1 thousand million – 1,000,000,000. Historically, however, in the UK the term billion meant 1 million million – 1,000,000,000,000 – but in the United States the term was used to refer to 1 thousand million. The US value had, however, become increasingly used in Britain and the Prime Minister, Harold Wilson confirmed in a written reply in 1974 that the meaning of “billion” would be thousand-million, in conformity with international usage.


The Oxford English Dictionary explains why UK and US usage differed.



The text of the 1974 Harold Wilson PQ:




This definition of a billion is now known as the short scale – where each new term for a number above a million is one thousand times greater than the previous one. The historical definition of a billion is now known as the long scale – where each new term for a number above a million is one million time greater than the previous one.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn04440/

That distinction was just not registering on me from @Apple fanboy. Thanks and sorry dude, the 3 extra zeros did not compute, senior moment. 🤔

 

[polyphenol]

the 3 extra zeros did not compute,

We've got loads more zeroes if you want them.

 

[SalisburySam]

Until the 1970s, common usage in the UK was that a billion was 1,000,000,000,000 - that is, a million million.

To avoid confusion, primarily regarding finance, the UK official declared that a billion would be 1,000,000,000 - a thousand million - just like the USA.

What is a billion?​

What constitutes a billion is a source of occasional confusion. In official UK statistics the term is now used to denote 1 thousand million – 1,000,000,000. Historically, however, in the UK the term billion meant 1 million million – 1,000,000,000,000 – but in the United States the term was used to refer to 1 thousand million. The US value had, however, become increasingly used in Britain and the Prime Minister, Harold Wilson confirmed in a written reply in 1974 that the meaning of “billion” would be thousand-million, in conformity with international usage.


The Oxford English Dictionary explains why UK and US usage differed.



The text of the 1974 Harold Wilson PQ:




This definition of a billion is now known as the short scale – where each new term for a number above a million is one thousand times greater than the previous one. The historical definition of a billion is now known as the long scale – where each new term for a number above a million is one million time greater than the previous one.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn04440/

Well I guess that clears up that critical issue!

 

[DaveSanDiego]

You know that a few billion other people in other countries already managed this without too much problem. No country started out Metric, not even the French.

This is true, that no country STARTED as metric... what you are missing is that people in those countries DID start as metric, since the day they were born.... and that the country (which ever that may be) transitions many many years ago. Americans grew up with our current system, and most likely as a National Standard will never change...

So for those in Metric oriented countries... Deal with it.... I assume you we deal with Metric conversions and find them just as "annoying"

 

[Huntn]

Well I guess that clears up that critical issue!

I’d certainly want to know that my billion was a thousand million, not a million million!

 

[SalisburySam]

I’d certainly want to know that my billion was a thousand million, not a million million!

So little in my life involves either…so not an issue for me. Sad, I know.

 

[Huntn]

So little in my life involves either…so not an issue for me. Sad, I know.

For most of us from a practical sense… unless math, science, or high finance played an important part in our lives. I was born (1953) and raised in the USA and seem to remember a time, along time ago where I thought a billion was a million million or am I imagining that? 🤔

However to be consistent, if a million is a thousand thousand, it seems more consistent a billion would be a thousand million.

 

[Jaze13]

A lot is confused by the word "normal". Are cooking temperatures normal?

True dat!

 

[cyb3rdud3]

The inscription on my antique world Atlas clock from Holand reads: NU ELCK SYN SIN. Good words for all of us. English translation: Everyman to his taste (To Each his own).

Are you sure of it origin and authenticity? I mean Holland is either Zuid-Holland or Noord-Holland, but that sentence although I can read it reads nothing like Dutch. If it was Dutch it would be Nu elk zijn zinde, but still doesn't make sense as a sentence. I hope you didn't pay to much for the clock

 

[polyphenol]

Are you sure of it origin and authenticity? I mean Holland is either Zuid-Holland or Noord-Holland, but that sentence although I can read it reads nothing like Dutch. If it was Dutch it would be Nu elk zijn zinde, but still doesn't make sense as a sentence. I hope you didn't pay to much for the clock

North of Amsterdam - the Zaan district, seems likely.

http://www.antique-horology.org/_editorial/nuelcksynsin/

Zaans is a dialect of Dutch spoken in the Zaan district, which lies north of Amsterdam, in the Dutch province of North Holland. Zaans is one of the oldest dialects in the country. The dialect has similarities to the West Frisian dialect which is spoken in an area further north of the Zaan district.

Zaans is spoken in the city of Zaandam and in the towns of Oostzaan, Westzaan, Krommenie, Assendelft, Zaandijk, Koog aan de Zaan, Jisp, Wormerveer, Wormer, and Oost- and West-Knollendam.

(Knowing next to nothing about horology or Dutch languages, I relied on the thought that some inscriptions use what we now think of as odd variants of languages. Even using, for example, IIII rather than IV on many clock faces. Often Latin inscriptions would make little sense to Romans of the empire. So I searched. )

 

[Huntn]

A lot is confused by the word "normal". Are cooking temperatures normal? There are few things which are in any sense cooked below 100ºF. For example, eggs start to set around 142ºF. It isn't difficult to find locations where outdoor temperatures which often fall outside that range.

Temperature differences are the same in Kelvin and Celsius. There is only a shift of the zero point. In terms of, for example, maps they would be deemed the same scale.

There are, as you say, some measurements which appear anomalous. My favourite example is the British Standard Pipe thread - 1/2" and 3/4" are standard across a large proportion of the world. But the only real reason for that is the cost of change - they would have to be the exact same size but expressed in millimetres. There is a big problem in that if they are similar in size, but technically different, it opens the doors to many mistakes.

Exchange normal with typical or usual.

 

[polyphenol]

Exchange normal with typical or usual.

(I tend to hate the word "normal" because of the confusion with the Gaussian distribution. In some contexts it should be banned.)

Still, we end up with temperatures well over 100F in very regular use. In that way, such temperatures are typical or usual or, even, normal.

 

[Huntn]

(I tend to hate the word "normal" because of the confusion with the Gaussian distribution. In some contexts it should be banned.)

Still, we end up with temperatures well over 100F in very regular use. In that way, such temperatures are typical or usual or, even, normal.

This might be a test for the human species to determine our viability as part of the Universe. And it’s not as if this is a mystery, we have been warned by the smartest among us for 60 years.

We are headed for boiling and baking, more realistically described as stiflingly, health threatenly hot, as the new normal for Earth temps in what used to be temperate areas. I hate the situation where technology must be relied on to keep us comfortable, in some cases alive, for longer periods of the Year..

Sure people have lived for ages in the desert and in the artic, so although survival is possible, for small numbers, it may not be doable for billions. Natural resources and food production could be the limiter as we approach The Great Filter.

 

[OverTheHill]

Personally I think they do it in Europe to make you feel better about gas prices.😂

$6+ a gallon is brutal.

 

[Vref]

How is the measurement unit of the country who holds up and protects the world, invents and innovates more than anyone, and comes to the aid of most incompetent nations in trouble, not to mention was the First Nation on the moon outdated?

 

[cyb3rdud3]

How is the measurement unit of the country who holds up and protects the world, invents and innovates more than anyone, and comes to the aid of most incompetent nations in trouble, not to mention was the First Nation on the moon outdated?

Oh dear where to begin; how about with the last one as that should be less controversial. NASA uses the Metric system And despite contrary myths, yes even the Appollo missions used metric. Want evidence, well here is the source code you'll see all calculations are using the metric system https://github.com/chrislgarry/Apollo-11/tree/master/Luminary099

Perhaps best to not go into the other points as they are even easier to debunk.

 

[JamesMay82]

Im 40 and and grew up in America but now live in the UK. Ive always used imperial until we did a building project here and i was forced to use metric and i must admit its so much easier and just sense. Also american scientists and even apple use metric

 

[Cromulent]

Im 40 and and grew up in America but now live in the UK. Ive always used imperial until we did a building project here and i was forced to use metric and i must admit its so much easier and just sense. Also american scientists and even apple use metric

All STEM people use metric.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

The entire world uses one or the other, either a DD/MM/YYYY system (common in European countries), either a YYYY/MM/DD system (common in East-Asian countries and some other places). Both are perfectly fine

I disagree with you here. YYYY/MM/DD is perfectly fine, in that it sorts properly. DD/MM/YYYY is just ridiculous.

MM/DD/YYYY is convenient, in that “usually” the year isn’t the important bit and dates can still be sorted simply. And of course dates are normally written as just MM/DD anyway. I do agree that YYYY/MM/DD would be “Better” when the full year is needed, but it’s rare enough in everyday use that it’s unimportant.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

Every single one of those countries did not start out with Metric, every single one of them managed to convert.

We have enough of an argument going on here, then you go and toss a Gall projection map like some sort of hand grenade??? 😳

 

[Cromulent]

I disagree with you here. YYYY/MM/DD is perfectly fine, in that it sorts properly. DD/MM/YYYY is just ridiculous.

MM/DD/YYYY is convenient, in that “usually” the year isn’t the important bit and dates can still be sorted simply. And of course dates are normally written as just MM/DD anyway. I do agree that YYYY/MM/DD would be “Better” when the full year is needed, but it’s rare enough in everyday use that it’s unimportant.

MM/DD/YYYY makes no sense. It is awful. The fact it is only used in one (maybe a couple) of countries globally shows that the vast majority of people think it is bad as well.

 

[skottichan]

MM/DD/YYYY makes no sense. It is awful. The fact it is only used in one (maybe a couple) of countries globally shows that the vast majority of people think it is bad as well.

It works here because of linguistics. Aside from the "4th of July", when someone in most of the US asks for the date, it's "April 25th" not "the 25th of April".

 

[Scepticalscribe]

It works here because of linguistics. Aside from the "4th of July", when someone in most of the US asks for the date, it's "April 25th" not "the 25th of April".

However, on This Side of the Pond, one will (or, I, and, for that matter, the people I grew up with will) usually answer that question by saying "the 25th of April", or "the 7th of May".

 

[Fred Zed]

MM/DD/YYYY makes no sense. It is awful. The fact it is only used in one (maybe a couple) of countries globally shows that the vast majority of people think it is bad as well.

I think they just created that to be different. A bit like the Miriam, she decided certain English words should be changed out of spite for the American dictionary 🤣

 

[compwiz1202]

Why does it matter to you? We use what we like use and you use what you like to use. Do you see us bitching why you use the metric system?
We don't care what you system you use and we like our system.

Now go to bed since it's 1 AM (which is ironic since you should have said 01:00 )

Exactly it's just DIFFERENT. I'm so sick of this in general. Just because something is different doesn't make it wrong.