Metrication Of America

Conversions Are Not Easy

Watching a TV commercial recently, I noticed Kroger had Kingsford charcoal on sale for $5.00. At first I thought it odd the bag weight was identified as 15.4 pounds.  In my younger days, bags of charcoal briquettes were sold principally in 5# and 10# bags, with even a 20# bag for the serious backyard grillers.  So, as I pondered how someone came up with a 15.4# bag weight, I suddenly remembered that most of the world doesn’t measure weight in pounds (#) but rather uses kilograms (kg).  

Eons ago, I learned a conversion unit for kilograms to pounds so I did a quick bit of mental math. Since 1 kilogram equals 2.2 pounds, it follows that 15.4/2.2 = 7.  Only, I did it in reverse by estimating the answer to the division problem to be 7 and mentally multiplying 7kg times 2.2lb/kg to get 15.4lb. 

I apologize for dragging you through a math lesson involving the metric system, but it’s crucial to my story.  I’ve been a fan of the metric system since I learned of its simplicity in my college days. The metric system is based on the decimal system.  All units of weights and measures are based on powers of 10. You remember, 10⁰ is 1, 10¹ is 10, 10² is 100, 10³ is 1,000, etc.  

Think about it, one meter is a measure of length and is about the same as the length of a yardstick.  While you and I learned a yardstick was made up of fractions of inches, inches, and feet, a meter is made up of millimeters (1/1,000) and centimeters (1/100).  We learned a yardstick was 36 inches long, or three feet long, that a foot was 12 inches, and inches were divided into complex units such as 1/16, 1/8, 3/16 1/4, 5/16, 3/8, 7/16,1/2…etc.

Elementary school teachers had to spend weeks, even months teaching us the complexities of measuring in feet and inches.  Sure, it all sounds simple to those of us who have used it all our lives.  We know about how long a mile is, and a few of us recall a mile is 5,280 feet.

The United States system of units of weights and measures is mind boggling, and I’ve only touched on linear measurements.  What about liquid measurements. That’s easy, right?  One ounce is a small liquid measure.  Four ounces make a half-pint.  Eight ounces comprise a pint, 32 ounces are a quart, 64 ounces are a half-gallon and 128 ounces constitute a gallon.  Cooks and chefs have to know such things and more.

Once someone learning the metric system understands powers of ten and the decimal system, the rest is a breeze.  Compare miles and kilometers (1,000 meters).  If someone asked you how many yards are in a mile, would you be able to recall 1760, or would you have to divide 5,280 by 3.  Yet, a person trained to use the metric system could calculate the number of meters in a kilometer by moving the decimal point for the number 1 to the right three places (1.0 to 1000).  By the way, the prefix kilo means 1000.

The simplicity of the metric system versus the US system is comparable to the days of horse drawn carriages versus travel by airplane.  There’s no contest.

There has been more than one attempt to convert the US to the metric system.  The last serious one was back in 1975 when Congress passed and President Gerald Ford signed into law, the Metric Conversion Act declaring the metric system "the preferred system of weights and measures for United States trade and commerce."  Sadly, it has remained just that, “the preferred system” and the old system remains in widespread use.  

However, global trading agreements and corporations who sell American made products globally have greatly contributed to the metrification (metrication) of America.

My favorite soft drink is Coca Cola.  The plastic bottle Coca Colas I buy are 16.9 ounces.  Care to guess how many liters that is? If I told you it was 500 milliliters would you be able to convert it to .5 liters by moving the decimal three places to the left.  Good! That’s a half-liter. 

I’ll be among the first to admit that moving completely to metric system would be a headache for everyone who grew up under the US customary units.  It’s not easy changing from something you’ve used all your life, but when all things are metric, future generations of young folks will shake their heads at how archaic and primitive, not to mention ridiculous, our present system of weights and measurements really are.

Yes, it would also be extremely costly if the US were to adopt the metric system.  Still, once all the labeling gets changed, the gas pumps converted to liters instead of gallons, and a ton of other changes, it would surely be a lot simpler.  Anyway, we are closer to 100% usage of the metric system than we were back in 1975, and you now know far more than you care to about a 15.4# bag of charcoal.