Metric views

The comment by Han Maenen on the previous article reminds us that this is the 200th anniversary of a decree which ended temporarily the use of the metric system for everyday purposes in France and elsewhere. Wikipedia provides an account … Continue reading → 2

Which is preferable: a swift metric transition or a leisurely one? UKMA would have preferred the former. Successive UK governments have opted for the latter, believing that it carries less risk to their popularity. Ronnie Cohen assesses progress. Despite the … Continue reading → 7

In his recent article “Why I …”,  Ronnie Cohen looked at the present to explain why he believes the UK should complete the transition to metric units. However, some of those who commented on his article also looked back. In … Continue reading → 2

Readers have commented recently on the obstacles to the transition to metric-only signs on Britain’s roads. This has prompted Metric Views to offer answers to some Frequently Asked Questions on this subject. In 2006, the UK Metric Association (UKMA) produced … Continue reading → 6

One of our readers has written to explain why he became interested in the campaign to complete Britain’s prolonged metric changeover. Ronnie Cohen wrote recently to Metric Views: “Out of all the bread-and-butter issues that top the political agenda, you … Continue reading → 15

The Department for Transport (DfT) has given in to anti-metric lobbying and backtracked on its earlier proposal that imperial-only height and width restriction signs should be replaced with dual metric/imperial signs within four years.  This climbdown is despite the responses … Continue reading → 21

Metric Views marks the end of 2011 by drawing attention to a recent exchange of letters in the Irish Times, one looking backwards, the other with a message to take into 2012. This letter appeared on 15 December 2011: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/letters/2011/1215/1224309100241.html … Continue reading → 13

One of our regular readers, John Frewen-Lord, offers this contribution to the festive fare: “As we live in a predominantly metric world, world leaders have decided that the traditional Christmas song, The Twelve Days of Christmas, is inappropriate in today’s … Continue reading → 3

By an odd co-incidence both “Which?” magazine and the BBC’s flagship “Panorama” programme  have recently run stories on the scams employed by the big supermarkets to prevent customers from comparing “value for money” in their weekly shopping. However, despite their … Continue reading → 17

Problems of sovereign debt in the eurozone have seen the UK side-tracked in EU decision making, and, say some commentators, headed for the exit. Is this situation likely to impact on the UK’s stalled metric changeover? The editors of Metric … Continue reading → 8

The Department for Transport have claimed that converting road signs to show metric units would be an unjustifiable diversion of resources from other priority areas.  So is there an argument that the costs should be met from some other budget?  … Continue reading → 22

On 12 November, Voice of America reported as follows: “President Barack Obama has announced that the United States and eight other Pacific nations have reached the broad outlines of an agreement to create a Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) to liberalize trade. … Continue reading → 12