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#51 2003-04-10 17:34:28
- Shaun Barrett
- Member
- From: Cairns, Queensland, Australia
- Registered: 2001-12-28
- Posts: 2,843
Re: Metric Conversion - Pros and Cons
Cindy writes:-
I love talk of pecks, bushels, ounces, gallons, quarts, pints, yards, furlongs, etc. It seems more varied, more human-oriented; like a lovely word salad.
I know just what you mean! And what a perfectly poetic way you have of expressing it, too ... "word salad".
Bill writes:-
And "A pints a pound the world around"
Actually, Bill, that's not strictly true.
In the American system of units, a pint is certainly 16 fl. ozs and, therefore, weighs a pound. And a U.S. gallon, being 8 pints, weighs 8 lbs.
However, in the British imperial system, a pint is 20 fl.ozs - one and a quarter pounds! (A British gallon weighing in at 10 lbs.)
Please forgive this outburst ... I tend to suffer with occasional bouts of pedantry and couldn't resist the urge to be pernickety about this!! 
The word 'aerobics' came about when the gym instructors got together and said: If we're going to charge $10 an hour, we can't call it Jumping Up and Down. - Rita Rudner
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#52 2003-04-11 08:33:02
- dicktice
- Member
- From: Nova Scotia, Canada
- Registered: 2002-11-01
- Posts: 1,764
Re: Metric Conversion - Pros and Cons
And, Shaun, wouldn't you know?--the word is "persnickety" here in Canada. Sorry, mate.
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#53 2003-04-11 09:40:10
- Bill White
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- Registered: 2001-09-09
- Posts: 2,114
Re: Metric Conversion - Pros and Cons
In the American system of units, a pint is certainly 16 fl. ozs and, therefore, weighs a pound. And a U.S. gallon, being 8 pints, weighs 8 lbs.
However, in the British imperial system, a pint is 20 fl.ozs - one and a quarter pounds! (A British gallon weighing in at 10 lbs.)
Heh!
Next time I ask for a pint of lager, better make sure I do so within the Commonwealth, no?
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#54 2003-04-11 09:41:30
- clark
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- Registered: 2001-09-20
- Posts: 6,375
Re: Metric Conversion - Pros and Cons
i thought the Pound was refrencing currency.
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