Units of Measure

[StinkyPete]

I'm suprised that GNAS quotes all their safety measurements in imperial. Don't they know some of us have never been taught this archaic unit of measure? Surely if it pertains to safety both imperial and metric should be quoted?

[Barry C]

As a young engineering student we sometimes had to make components with inches.</p>

Imperial is a pain in the A**... I need a 5 and 3 64th thingy, and and whats 9 32's plus a 7/125? Everything involves so much more effort! It wasn't suprising the sustem was named Pikey Imperial used by old people by our class. Metric is much more scientific and logical. You can say imperial is traditional, but so is the even pikier thing that imperial replaced and we don't wanna be using that ! </p>

I hope that the country becomes 100% metric soon#and the oldies don't put up too much of a fight, if they do we will have to wait until they are retired.</p>

But I agree, GNAS should use Metric. But guess what, the people running GNAS are all oldies </p>

[Armchair Archer]

Being an engineer, I agree with Barry for the most part.</p>

In the engineering world, I very rarely use imperial measurements these days, although I'm pretty conversant with both and generally ok with converting between the two. Then again, I was trained to use both.</p>

The one thing we need to do is be very careful that we don't end up with the American farcical attempt at conversion to metric (Sorry Clicky and co.), I've seen machines from the US which are supposed to be metric and you find bolts with metric heads and imperial threads, or vice versa !!! Or how about a wire belt at 914mm wide?? (actually 3 feet = 914.4mm)</p>

Like Barry, I think that metric is a lot simpler, although I didn't agree with the poll that we should go metric because we're 'part of Europe', if thats the case, lets scrap the pound (heaven forbid) and start driving on the wrong side of the road (Ditto)</p>

Not sure if the GNAS should convert to metric, I kinda like things as they are (it sets the british way of shooting apart from the rest) and they do have metric rounds, if thats what you want.</p>

On the safety side of things, it shouldn't be too much trouble to quote metric AND imperial measurements. I think it's more a case of the rules haven't been updated as much as they should have.</p>



One more thing, if FITA#uses metric, shouldn't we be shooting ends of 10 arrows ???</p>

[Barry C]

I don't consider Metric to be a European measurement. It the standard measurement of science worldwide. Except the US Hehe no one has made a NASA joke yet!</p>

I do feel that GNAS should get with it and fitaise everything, especially for major national competitions. Not much point shooting yorks when the rets of the world is singing a different tune. Maybe Mr. Suk will do something about that?</p>

But just think of some of#the changes if we did go Metric. Bow(draw) weight in KG. Arrow speed in m/s. Guess it wont make any difference. We will still shoot at the gold bit with the heaviest bow we can manage making the arrows travel as fast as is possible. </p>

[radsbow]

I'm an oldie (37y.o.)#and was at school when they started to teach you both units of measure - very confusing, well for me it was Anyway, I have to say I do very much prefer the Metric system.

[Barry C]

In Science I was onlt taught Metric but in Engineering we used both. ANyone cad up up numbers with zero's fractions are a but more difficult, at least for me anyway

[wingate_52]

I am an old teacher of design technology. I learned imperial measurement as a kid. I teach using a mixture of metric and imperial. Shops still sell timber in imperial (metric equivalents) e.g. an 8' x 4' panel of MDF is sold as a 2440mm x 1220mm sheet. Yes you can think around this by using a foot as roughly 300mm or 1 inch as 25 mm.
55 metres is halfway between 50 and 60 yards.What annoys me is that the maths departments teach pupils measurement in cm. Not S.I units

[cecile]

I voted for keeping both metric and imperial units... even if I'm French and I have qualification in physical measurements... Imperial units are part of British history!

Concerning industries however, always using metric units would be the best in my opinion (I remember difficulties because US Gallons are not the same as Canadian Gallons... I remember also big lots of scrapped parts because people thought the unit was µm and not µinch...).

[Jerry Tee]

Some things should stay in pounds and inches like draw weight and arrow lenght. As for arrows metric as far as diameter and a straight spine rating is Ok by me.

[Furface]

I write as someone old enough to have programmed computers in £Sd...

Barry C - 24/7/2005 10:13 PM



Metric is much more scientific and logical. </p>

Apart from having to suppress a feeling that that is a good enough reason for ignoring metric..
No it isn't. It only feels that way because the origins of modern science and the metric system both appeared as part of the same intellectual strand, at about the time of the French revolution. The decimal/metric system was designed that way simply because it wasn't the Imperial system. There is just as much logic to a duodecimal system. And you can count to much greater numbers using your fingers with binary ! And science doesn't really come in to it, as the numerical and measuring systems are simply ways of describing things, and do not have scientific "truth" in their own right.
Me? I'd go back to stades and parasangs.