What is your preferred system of measurement?

[West Aurelia]

There's nothing wrong with Fahrenheit, and it feels very natural when you grow up with it.

Yup, and it's not convenient for Americans to switch either since everyone else use it. Fortunately for me, I spent most of my childhood out of the US and learned the metric system, so I have no problem living in Australia at the moment.

[Big Jim P]

I measure everything in "Jims".

[Immoren]

Planck units

[Nazis in Space]

The Royal Gur Cube is a classic.

This being said, the System International d'Unites has some useful expansions.

[United Provinces of Swaziland]

I understand both imperial and metric and use both systems on a daily basis.

[The Liberated Territories]

Landmil.

[Atomic Utopia]

As some have mentioned before, plank units are of such extraordinary utility in measuring the everyday and the unusual it is impossible to ignore these units.

Also, doesn't "about 1x10^34 plank lengths" sound much better than "about 1 meter"?

[West Aurelia]

I measure everything in "Jims".

So is 1 Jim your height?

[Camelza]

Metric, of course.

[The Archregimancy]

All of these systems are arbitrary. There's nothing wrong with Fahrenheit, and it feels very natural when you grow up with it.

And that, realistically, is the only argument in favour of using one measurement system over another.

Some of us, wackily enough, were born in countries where there were 12 pence in a shilling, and 20 shillings in a pound, for 240 pence in the pound. This no doubt seemed perfectly natural to people raised within the system; but I imagine most of us today would feel more comfortable working with currency divisions of 14.99 rather than 14/19/11.

Any system feels 'very natural' if it's the only - or almost only - system you've been raised with. But the problem with non-metric measurements isn't just remembering how many yards go into a furlong, but that non-metric measurements differ between countries. Imperial and US measurements are not the same, for example; there are four pecks to the bushel in both the UK and the US - but the Imperial peck is 9.09 litres, while the US peck is 8.81 litres. In both cases I think you'll find that a peck is a slightly smaller measure of voume than a traditional Chinese dǒu (which in turn is a slightly smaller unit of measurement than its nearest Macanese equivalent).

It's true that my field has many a use for recording traditional measures in use when an object or building was made, but courtesy alone means we record the metric alongside the traditional measure when publishing. Whatever an individual's preference for measurements on a local level, any attempt to interact with colleagues on an international level is likely going to require the use of metric so as to avoid confusion over the precise quantity meant by a traditional measure.

However unfairly, that some Americans therefore refuse to use metric - as opposed to merely preferring to use traditional measures at home - comes across to many colleagues, at least in my field, as a symbol of stubborn insularity that often actively hampers international collaboration.

[AiliailiA]

As long as there has been civilization, there have been systems of measurement for distance, size, and temperature. Such systems are needed for complex mathematics and building, among many uses. In older days, there were dozens or hundreds of systems used by individual groups and areas.
Nowadays, there are significantly less systems of measurement used. There are only three main systems of measure for size, distance, and volume used today, these being Metric, imperial, and Customary. The majority of the world uses the Metric system, while the U.S. and Liberia use Customary. The Imperial system is used mainly in common situations and by Myanmar.
My question for you, NationStates, is what if your preferred System of measurement, and why? Which do you use in your daily life, or do you use multiple? Which system is superior? Should there be separate systems for common life and science?
I personally prefer the Customary system, mainly because I grew up with it, and am more smilie with it. I recognize that the Metric system is better for science, but I think the Customary system is easier for common situations. I think that the Metric and Customary systems are each better in their own area, but as I run into situations where the Customary is superior more, I support it.

Imperial/Customary (which are basically the same thing, except the USA wants to be a special snowflake) is not better for everyday situations. You have to memorize a whole bunch of irrational, arbitrary measurements, whereas in Metric everything is base ten.

But as you admit later in your post, a multiple of 12 is NOT irrational. If the Imperial/Customary systems used only multiples of 12 (eg, 12 ounces to the pound, 1728 pounds to the ton) they would be defensible despite requiring extensive knowledge of times-tables. Divisibility by 2 and 3 opens up so many other divisors.

Metric is superior in every respect. Of course, a base-12 system would work better than Metric's base-10 system because 12 can be divided in more ways than 10, but of the three Metric is by far the best in any and all situations.

No, the best situation would be that the prehistoric humans who established a counting system had kept counting when they ran out of fingers. Ten fingers, two nipples, base B from the start!

But actually I am agreeing with you about base-12.

12 can be divided in more ways than 10, and very pleasingly is divisible by 3 and 4:
1 2 3 4 . 6 . . . . . (12)
1 2 . . 5 . . . . (10)

Larger numbers do tend to have more factors. But we have to go up to 60 to find a number which is divisible by 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. To use that base, we would need more counting digits than there are letters in the latin alphabet.

12 is a sweet spot.

So Metric is the best we can manage within the constraints of a decimal counting system. A metric system would be better if our counting system was base 12 (or base B if you will) and everyday arithmetic would be easier too.

[Lleu llaw Gyffes]

However unfairly, that some Americans therefore refuse to use metric - as opposed to preferring to use traditional measures at home - comes across to many colleagues, at least in my field, as a symbol of stubborn insularity that often actively hampers international collaboration.

Britain using Imperial is indeed insularity; but USA using Imperial is continentality.

[Forsher]

Actually the fact that 190 countries on 193 uses the metric system as their official measurement system speaks for itself.

If 190 countries wore socks with sandals as they jumped off a bridge, would you do the same?

Depends if the weather is cold.

One must never shiver when one is about to die.

[The States of Balloon]

Metric. I am, in fact, pretty lost with other systems (except those bits relevant to inches, I know an inch is 2.54 centimetres). However, this is far more familiarity than the idiots whose understanding of 6' is "tall". I am more like 6'7" or 6'8" (i.e. obviously more than 6' tall) and the number of times I hear, "Are you six foot?" *shakes head*

Are you 6 foot?

Is he 7 foot?

[Ifreann]

We should measure everything in Kelvin.

After running 20 Kelvin everyday for the last 6 Kelvin I've lost 30 Kelvin!

Wait, what?

[Norstal]

I'm doing pretty good here in the United States!

We already use the metric system.

We just don't use it everywhere.

Architecture and construction, measuring your own height, as well as measuring road distances are Customary, but not much else as far as my experience with units has been.

I think any decent-paying professional jobs require you to understand metric.

Hey it's fine if you don't want to even understand metric. That just means I get to take your job.

[Soldati Senza Confini]

We already use the metric system.

We just don't use it everywhere.

Architecture and construction, measuring your own height, as well as measuring road distances are Customary, but not much else as far as my experience with units has been.

I think any decent-paying professional jobs require you to understand metric.

Hey it's fine if you don't want to even understand metric. That just means I get to take your job.

Well my dad only uses customary units at his job and he earns more than 100,000 dollars.

Of course, he can also deal with metric measurements when he needs to, but it's not required at what he does. So I'd say there are exceptions, depending on what your "decent paying professional job" threshold is: beginning with the office or beginning with a license, a truck with sprinkler parts, and a shovel.

[Norstal]

I think any decent-paying professional jobs require you to understand metric.

Hey it's fine if you don't want to even understand metric. That just means I get to take your job.

Well my dad only uses customary units at his job and he earns more than 100,000 dollars.

Of course, he can also deal with metric measurements when he needs to, but it's not required at what he does. So I'd say there are exceptions, depending on what your "decent paying professional job" threshold is: beginning with the office or beginning with a license, a truck with sprinkler parts, and a shovel.

I'm talking more about the people who outright refuses to touch metric because "lol tradition" to the point that you think they must be parodies of themselves. I don't know how they get ahead in life, but they must not be very far.

[Lleu llaw Gyffes]

I think any decent-paying professional jobs require you to understand metric.

Hey it's fine if you don't want to even understand metric. That just means I get to take your job.

Well my dad only uses customary units at his job and he earns more than 100,000 dollars.

Of course, he can also deal with metric measurements when he needs to, but it's not required at what he does. So I'd say there are exceptions, depending on what your "decent paying professional job" threshold is: beginning hire minions to with the office or beginning with a license, a truck with sprinkler parts, and a shovel.

If you get 100 k$, you can hire a minion to translate measurements into metric. With 100 k$, you can hire minions to measure according to Babylonian cubic Gur. You dad GETS 100k for hiring people to do the actual work. Your dad don't EARN 100k.

[Anollasia]

Metric.

[Zhahir]

I use US standard for informal use although if I'm doing something official or any technical work I prefer Metric.

[The Black Forrest]

Preferred? Not really a choice as you use what you know.

The US tried metric years ago but it was a piss poor attempt. Basically, it was "here's metric. GO!"

We needed to be treated like children and taught as it was a new way of thinking......

[The Black Forrest]

I measure everything in "Jims".

How many slim jims in a mile?

[Greater Nevadian Empire]

Metric system makes much more sense (1,10, 100, 1000 instead of 12, 3, 36, all that nonsense), but I know the American system better.

[SJT]

Metric since they teach it in school; but I'm still a lot more used to the English system having lived in the US.