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Presidential Candidate Lincoln Chaffee Proposes That US Go Metric
New submitter Applehu Akbar writes: The good news is that for the first time in years, a candidate in the next presidential cycle has proposed completing our transition to the metric system. Though unfortunately it's Lincoln Chaffee, let's all hope that this long-standing nerd issue gets into the 2016 debate because of this. Warning: Lame CNN autoplaying video.
Not all those countries listed as being fully metricated really are. In Canada, most people measure their weight in pounds (although younger Canadians are starting to switch over) and the same for buying bulk items at a grocery store (though you won't get a second look for ordering in grams). The construction industry, at least at construction worker level is exclusively imperial. Heck, you have to check measuring tapes before you buy them here because it's not unusual to find imperial only tapes. Lord help you if you're trying to buy non SAE nuts and bolts at a hardware store (There are some metric items. They tend to be the ones that they hardly ever have in stock and nobody has bought them for ages---there's also about 5% of the selection.) In fact, if you want nuts and bolts in metric, the best place to go is either a car dealership or an auto parts store (since cars are metricated, even in the US). Realtors typically advertise measurements in feet, and when you get home insurance, they'll ask how many square feet your home is (so will the guy trying to sell you an air conditioner). Speaking of HVAC, it's all done in BTUs and PSI. BBQs and window A/C are sold in BTUs as well. It's illegal to drive on less than 2/32" of tread (though I'm certain the regulation is done with some nasty metric mm measurement). Wire is measured in AWG and kcmil (though the code book is in metric, it provides AWG and kcmil, and all other measurements are imperial -> metric bastardizations). Rides at amusement parks have minimum heights in inches (and for fatties, seat widths in inches). Computer cables are sold by the foot, and so is wire (although wire is sometimes charged by the metre). Cooking is done by the tablespoon and pound. Your new home has 1/2" PEX and 1 1/2" DWV for the kitchen sink.
I would not be surprised if non-building based engineering is all done in metric, however.
What you *will* find people commonly doing is measuring driving distances/speed in kilometers (though is is not all that uncommon to have people say "miles" when they meant kilometers, but not for speed), temperature in Celsius, and we have (fortunately!) moved away from the apothecary system for prescriptions to metric weights. Drinks tend to be measured by the litre (or sometimes cup), along with car engines and the oil going into them.
Some of it is due to the US, I'm sure, but not all of it.