PhotonWrangler
Flashaholic
I went to a yard sale. I asked if I could buy only 24 inches.
How many inches in a yard?
- Thread starter geepondy
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drizzle
Enlightened
[ QUOTE ]
PhotonWrangler said:
I went to a yard sale. I asked if I could buy only 24 inches.
[/ QUOTE ]
Groan! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
That sounds like a Steven Wright joke. Did you "borrow" it?
PhotonWrangler said:
I went to a yard sale. I asked if I could buy only 24 inches.
[/ QUOTE ]
Groan! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
That sounds like a Steven Wright joke. Did you "borrow" it?
idleprocess
Flashaholic
Yeah, metric would be better ... but there are so many industrial/commercial standards in the US based on the imperial system. Those are going to be tough. There's no direct equivalent for 16 gauge cold-rolled steel, 10-32 UNF machine screws, or 7-ply 1" plywood.
What the heck does the rest of the world call a two-by-four (actually 3.5"x1.5" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif) anyway?
What the heck does the rest of the world call a two-by-four (actually 3.5"x1.5" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif) anyway?
Bright Scouter
Enlightened
[ QUOTE ]
idleprocess said:
What the heck does the rest of the world call a two-by-four (actually 3.5"x1.5" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif) anyway?
[/ QUOTE ]
A standard framing stud? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
idleprocess said:
What the heck does the rest of the world call a two-by-four (actually 3.5"x1.5" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif) anyway?
[/ QUOTE ]
A standard framing stud? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
KevinL
Flashlight Enthusiast
Ask me and I wouldn't be able to say it. I only memorized the conversions I use often and necessarily, after all, born and raised in a part of the world that uses the metric system exclusively.
Almost nobody here knows or cares about imperial measurements. I have to do all the conversions because I work with people from around the world. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon23.gif
The ones I have mentally filed away.. 3.23 feet in a meter, 12" in a foot, 1.6 km in a mile, 2.2 pounds in a kilo, 1 lumen = 1 candlepower and so on, just the essentials.
For the rest I just use Versaverter by www.pawprint.net . World Time is great too. MacOS X has a built in converter in their calculator too, very nifty since Versaverter is currently only available for Win32.
Almost nobody here knows or cares about imperial measurements. I have to do all the conversions because I work with people from around the world. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon23.gif
The ones I have mentally filed away.. 3.23 feet in a meter, 12" in a foot, 1.6 km in a mile, 2.2 pounds in a kilo, 1 lumen = 1 candlepower and so on, just the essentials.
For the rest I just use Versaverter by www.pawprint.net . World Time is great too. MacOS X has a built in converter in their calculator too, very nifty since Versaverter is currently only available for Win32.
KC2IXE
Flashaholic*
[ QUOTE ]
rscanady said:
...snip... I guess if you asked them how many cups in a gallon, then they really would be lost. ...snip...
[/ QUOTE ]
The inches in a yard I have memorized, but cups in a gallon, I always have to work out via the 2 cups in a pint, 2 pints in a quart, 4 quarts in a gallon route
At least I can /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
rscanady said:
...snip... I guess if you asked them how many cups in a gallon, then they really would be lost. ...snip...
[/ QUOTE ]
The inches in a yard I have memorized, but cups in a gallon, I always have to work out via the 2 cups in a pint, 2 pints in a quart, 4 quarts in a gallon route
At least I can /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
zespectre
Flashlight Enthusiast
I'm doing fine measurement & mathwise but it was a little difficult as I was in school during that aborted attempt to bring metric into the United States so neither method got the full attention.
The way I see it is that school (at least here in the U.S.) has become an entitlement and students are treated in a production-line fashion (by administration) much to the frustration of many of the teachers.
In the past a person who wanted to get beyond "readin' writin' and 'rithmatic" had to really WANT to do so and demonstrate that will. We had a lot less graduates (from high schools and colleges) but you could be pretty certain that piece of paper accurately represented someone's education.
Now everybody has to graduate (no child left behind) even if they don't actually have any advanced skills and the teaching profession is seeing what I call "education inflation" where even a masters degree doesn't necessarily indicate true competency and the schools are starting to push for multiple masters or even doctorates (as though our underpaid/overworked teachers had time and/or money for that sort of thing).
Okay, I'm going to quit ranting now and go for a hike!
The way I see it is that school (at least here in the U.S.) has become an entitlement and students are treated in a production-line fashion (by administration) much to the frustration of many of the teachers.
In the past a person who wanted to get beyond "readin' writin' and 'rithmatic" had to really WANT to do so and demonstrate that will. We had a lot less graduates (from high schools and colleges) but you could be pretty certain that piece of paper accurately represented someone's education.
Now everybody has to graduate (no child left behind) even if they don't actually have any advanced skills and the teaching profession is seeing what I call "education inflation" where even a masters degree doesn't necessarily indicate true competency and the schools are starting to push for multiple masters or even doctorates (as though our underpaid/overworked teachers had time and/or money for that sort of thing).
Okay, I'm going to quit ranting now and go for a hike!
I am not trying to defend the current state of public education, but evaluating it on one simple and rather unimportant factoid like inches in a yard is not too helpful. Many studends today could probably demonstrate proficiency in metric measure or certainly computer skills that would make folks in our generation seem pretty dull by comparison.
As an example, can you show me how to find and download a certain music file from the internet and install it on an ipod, all while circumventing the copyright protection and avoiding spyware? If you answered yes, you are probalby from the younger generation. If you said "what's an ipod?" you are probably from my generation. Of course, anyone reading this board is likely to have computer skills, but you get the point.
Now which skill set do you think is more relevant in today's economy? Using a tape measure or using a networked computer?
As an example, can you show me how to find and download a certain music file from the internet and install it on an ipod, all while circumventing the copyright protection and avoiding spyware? If you answered yes, you are probalby from the younger generation. If you said "what's an ipod?" you are probably from my generation. Of course, anyone reading this board is likely to have computer skills, but you get the point.
Now which skill set do you think is more relevant in today's economy? Using a tape measure or using a networked computer?
BB
Flashlight Enthusiast
Had a computer (actually a high density Giga-Bit Router) that was being mechanically designed by a mechanical engineer and a drafts person... Somehow, the designer got the wrong base units in his CAD program and when it went to the sheetmetal house to get formed--Well, something that was supposed to be roughly 19" wide became a little bigger than a sugar cube according to the CAD model.
We were not happy, did not pay the vendor their full fees, and had to re-engineer/redraw design from scratch.
Had another CAD conversion software package 5+ years ago that I used for printed circuit board fabrication and documentation. The XY coordinates where just fine (boards were typically from 1 inch to 1.5 feet in size). The Z coordinates were at an elevation greater than the size of the known universe (made it very hard to do a group select/move in AutoCad).
What used to pass for sanity checks and common sense is becoming quite rare in places. So, yes, knowing measurement units and a computer are both important.
-Bill
We were not happy, did not pay the vendor their full fees, and had to re-engineer/redraw design from scratch.
Had another CAD conversion software package 5+ years ago that I used for printed circuit board fabrication and documentation. The XY coordinates where just fine (boards were typically from 1 inch to 1.5 feet in size). The Z coordinates were at an elevation greater than the size of the known universe (made it very hard to do a group select/move in AutoCad).
What used to pass for sanity checks and common sense is becoming quite rare in places. So, yes, knowing measurement units and a computer are both important.
-Bill
idleprocess
Flashaholic
Sounds like the router model got spit out in mm rather than inches - usually an easy fix.
I have to wonder how much criticism of the education system and younger generations is nostalgia? I also suspect that this is something that the boomers heard from their parents, who heard it from the parents of the depression era, etc.
I have to wonder how much criticism of the education system and younger generations is nostalgia? I also suspect that this is something that the boomers heard from their parents, who heard it from the parents of the depression era, etc.
KC2IXE
Flashaholic*
[ QUOTE ]
Lurker said:
...snip...
As an example, can you show me how to find and download a certain music file from the internet and install it on an ipod, all while circumventing the copyright protection and avoiding spyware? If you answered yes, you are probalby from the younger generation. ...snip...
[/ QUOTE ]
Yep, I can do that, and I'm 42 - and I can write the client software to do some of that too - then again, I'm a geek. I can also show you how to fire a steam engine, run a lathe and mill, solder etc
Lurker said:
...snip...
As an example, can you show me how to find and download a certain music file from the internet and install it on an ipod, all while circumventing the copyright protection and avoiding spyware? If you answered yes, you are probalby from the younger generation. ...snip...
[/ QUOTE ]
Yep, I can do that, and I'm 42 - and I can write the client software to do some of that too - then again, I'm a geek. I can also show you how to fire a steam engine, run a lathe and mill, solder etc
BB
Flashlight Enthusiast
No, it was not an output conversion problem... It was that the model was entered in the wrong dimensions (may have been metric base while using inch templates—too long ago to remember the details) and there was no easy fix that about 3 or 4 different mechanical engineers in three different companies could figure out how to do.
Not saying it could not be done--just there was no native way to re-scale a model that was entered wrong in the first place (basic assumption in the software was that the underlying model is correct, then simply a unit transformation problem).
The consultant had an incentive to fix the model (if he wanted to get paid). Apparently, it was not enough though. He was used to printing out dimensioned piece part drawings and was never caught before by a larger shop that used the CAD model directly to program the metal cutting/breaking/stamping machines before.
Is there nostalgia involved here? Naaaa, I learned to grasp reality while walking to and from school, near San Francisco 5 miles, up hill each way, in the snow…. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
-Bill
Not saying it could not be done--just there was no native way to re-scale a model that was entered wrong in the first place (basic assumption in the software was that the underlying model is correct, then simply a unit transformation problem).
The consultant had an incentive to fix the model (if he wanted to get paid). Apparently, it was not enough though. He was used to printing out dimensioned piece part drawings and was never caught before by a larger shop that used the CAD model directly to program the metal cutting/breaking/stamping machines before.
Is there nostalgia involved here? Naaaa, I learned to grasp reality while walking to and from school, near San Francisco 5 miles, up hill each way, in the snow…. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
-Bill
geepondy
Flashlight Enthusiast
I'm gonna ask the same members of the family how many centimeters in a meter and see if they know. We deal with metric measurements at work so I'm comfortable with them but still can not in my head approximate celsius temps to farenheight.
PlayboyJoeShmoe
Flashaholic
I avoided this thread for a while thinking it was indeed a joke.
As a 45 Year Old High School Graduate, I most certainly know the correct answer is 36".
I THINK it's 100 Centimeters in a Meter, but I could most definately be wrong!
As a 45 Year Old High School Graduate, I most certainly know the correct answer is 36".
I THINK it's 100 Centimeters in a Meter, but I could most definately be wrong!
PhotonWrangler
Flashaholic
[ QUOTE ]
drizzle said:
[ QUOTE ]
PhotonWrangler said:
I went to a yard sale. I asked if I could buy only 24 inches.
[/ QUOTE ]
Groan! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
That sounds like a Steven Wright joke. Did you "borrow" it?
[/ QUOTE ]
I don't remember if he specifically said that, but he's the person I was thinking of when I wrote that. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
drizzle said:
[ QUOTE ]
PhotonWrangler said:
I went to a yard sale. I asked if I could buy only 24 inches.
[/ QUOTE ]
Groan! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
That sounds like a Steven Wright joke. Did you "borrow" it?
[/ QUOTE ]
I don't remember if he specifically said that, but he's the person I was thinking of when I wrote that. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
GJW
Flashlight Enthusiast
[ QUOTE ]
KevinL said:The ones I have mentally filed away.. 3.23 feet in a meter, 12" in a foot, 1.6 km in a mile, 2.2 pounds in a kilo, 1 lumen = 1 candlepower and so on, just the essentials.
[/ QUOTE ]
Hello.....
Nobody?
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
KevinL said:The ones I have mentally filed away.. 3.23 feet in a meter, 12" in a foot, 1.6 km in a mile, 2.2 pounds in a kilo, 1 lumen = 1 candlepower and so on, just the essentials.
[/ QUOTE ]
Hello.....
Nobody?
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Sinjz
Flashlight Enthusiast
[ QUOTE ]
Sigman said:
I have to agree with raggie! There's approximately 864,000 square inches in my yard, though if you subtract the area my driveway, deck, and house occupy, there's considerbly less! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
[/ QUOTE ]
Damn, is your front yard a football field?!?! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif
Sigman said:
I have to agree with raggie! There's approximately 864,000 square inches in my yard, though if you subtract the area my driveway, deck, and house occupy, there's considerbly less! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
[/ QUOTE ]
Damn, is your front yard a football field?!?! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif
PhotonWrangler
Flashaholic
I work with fiber optics occasionally, and they always specify footages in metric terms, thus attenuation is specified in db/km. But all other supporting cabling (in my country) is specified in inches/feet/miles. Thus it's possible that we have to order 3300 feet of duct to run 1km of fiber. And whenever I need a 10' jumper I have to order one that's 3 meters (which is pretty close).
MaxaBaker
Flashlight Enthusiast
I knew that in 3rd grade /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon23.gif
kitelights
Flashlight Enthusiast
I deal with this DAILY. I operate a windshield repair business repairing chips, stars and running cracks in windshields. For running cracks when customers call I need details, mainly, how long is it?
I hear things like, "It's one inch."
My reply is, "So it's half the size of your little finger?"
"Oh no, it must be two inches."
I ask more questions and find out that what they have is really 30 inches long. I am amazed at the vast majority that have no concept or knowledge of measurement.
A few weeks ago, a customer asked me to measure her bedroom window. The blinds she purchased didn't fit (her brother had measured) and she didn't know how.
I've done work for public school teachers that don't know proper English (or at least they don't use it) or measurements. I don't understand how many of the college kids that I've done work for ever made it out of high school. So what the hell are they doing in college?
I think that a high school education 30-40 years ago had more practical value than many four year degrees today.
Metric? We learned it in school - there was talk about the US converting to metric. Glad we didn't - I know the math, but I can't think in terms of metric. The numbers are easier (unless you have a problem with decimals), but when you've learned to think and relate to our system, changing that would be difficult for me.
I hear things like, "It's one inch."
My reply is, "So it's half the size of your little finger?"
"Oh no, it must be two inches."
I ask more questions and find out that what they have is really 30 inches long. I am amazed at the vast majority that have no concept or knowledge of measurement.
A few weeks ago, a customer asked me to measure her bedroom window. The blinds she purchased didn't fit (her brother had measured) and she didn't know how.
I've done work for public school teachers that don't know proper English (or at least they don't use it) or measurements. I don't understand how many of the college kids that I've done work for ever made it out of high school. So what the hell are they doing in college?
I think that a high school education 30-40 years ago had more practical value than many four year degrees today.
Metric? We learned it in school - there was talk about the US converting to metric. Glad we didn't - I know the math, but I can't think in terms of metric. The numbers are easier (unless you have a problem with decimals), but when you've learned to think and relate to our system, changing that would be difficult for me.
