Re: [GZG] weights was Slightly OT - Hypothetical weapon

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[TomB] Metric makes sense for any form of engineering math. But for
> describing people's height and weight, Imperial seems more intuitive.
> Same with shopping for food in pounds,

[Karl Heinz] Depends on the type of food, I guess, and on the quantity
you
buy.
In Germany, "Pfund" (pound) is still used colloquially when buying some
food (e.g.meat), though nowadays it is generally understood to be half a
kilo instead of whatever odd number of Gramms it was in the Kaiser's
days.

[TomB] Well, a lot of our measures are drawn from common things of olden
ages... Road widths somewhat tie to horse/wagon widths, a pound is a
useful
unit for food measurement because it has some correspondence with what
you
might use making a meal (or a half pound would). A foot is somewhat like
a
foot. A yard is somewhat like the distance of a long stride or fingertip
to
armpit for some. A quart is about what you'd carry in a canteen. Using
stones as weight might make some sense. Etc.

-- 
"Now, I go to spread happiness to the rest of the station. It is a
terrible
responsibility but I have learned to live with it."
   Londo, A Voice in the Wilderness, Part I

"To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like
administering medicine to the dead."  --  Thomas Paine

   Thomas Paine