• Infernal_pizza@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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    1 day ago

    The British have a stupid mix of Imperial and metric. We usually measure distance in meters/centimeters but feet and inches are still used fairly regularly especially if you’re measuring the height of a person. Large distances are usually measured in miles unless you’re going for a run in which case you probably use km. Then you go for a drive and measure your speed in miles per hour, and your fuel efficiency in miles per gallon. Except you now need to fill up so you go to the petrol station where the prices are listed in pence per litre. Most other liquids are also measured in litres unless you’re buying milk or beer.

    Then if you’re weighing things you probably use metric, unless you’re weighing a person or you’re an old person cooking. Temperature is also measured in celcius unless you’re old.

    • Wörk@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      Don’t forget to give your weight in stones and a horses height in hands…

      • knowone@slrpnk.net
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        1 day ago

        And the size of your land in acres/hectares. And a lot of ingredients in cups (which has never been a set amount in the UK since its beginning). And distance sometimes in yards

        • Korhaka@sopuli.xyz
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          15 hours ago

          If you are nobility perhaps, I only have 37 miliacres if you combine the house as well as the garden.

        • joel_feila@lemmy.world
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          18 hours ago

          At least area in acres does avoid the issue of 10 square unit. Does that a 10 by 10 square or a square with a Total area of 10?

          • prettybunnys@sh.itjust.works
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            18 hours ago

            Don’t forget to thumb your nose at the Americans for using these systems you made up in almost the same way you guys do, just a different mixture.

    • jaupsinluggies@feddit.uk
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      1 day ago

      We even measure the same thing using different standards. The three tyre measurements are taken in mm, mm, and inches.

      I put it down to us being smarter than everyone else.

    • robocall@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      I guess the silver lining for the British is they have more familiarity with both types of measurements than the purests.

      • Obi@sopuli.xyz
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        21 hours ago

        Except they only know the amounts/frame of references for the specific things they’re used to, so it’s not like they can do the conversion any better than the rest of us. Canadians have a similar (though different) system as well.